METHODIS T. 
262 
cieties throughout the world ; and (hall prefix the num¬ 
bers as they flood in the year 1S0S, that our readers may 
fee the great increafe that has taken place within the laid 
ten years. 
Number of Members in the Societies. 
1806. 
1816. 
In Great Britain - 
110,803 
<91,680 
In Ireland ... 
23,773 
28,542 
In France - 
35 
At Bruflels - - - 
10 
At Gibraltar ... 
40 
63 
At Sierra Leone - 
129 
At the Cape of Good Hope 
4 - a 
In Ceylon .... 
5 6 
In the Weft-Indies 
14,940 
18,938 
Nova Scotia, Quebec, Newfoundland 
1,418 
1,824 
In the United States 
U 9,944 
211,165 
Total 
270,918 
452,484 
The expenfes, ordinary and extraordinary, for the year 
1815-16, amounted to 14,664b 5s. 5d. the receipts to 
only 12,670b 10s. id. 
The following is given as the public creed of the Me¬ 
thodifts, by one of their own number.—“ They embrace 
the great leading features of the Chriftian religion, as 
acknowledged by the Church of England, viz. The 
Unity of the Trinity in the Godhead: the univerlality 
of the love of God to man: the fall of Adam, and con- 
fequent depravity of his offspring: the urdverfal extent 
of the atonement, and its divine efficacy for the falva- 
tion of every foul of man by whom it is embraced : the 
neceflity of repentance towards God, and of faith in the 
Lord Jefus Chrift; of regeneration, of purity of heart, 
of reftoration to the favour of God, and the recovery of 
his image in this world ; and of a life uniformly devoted 
to the fervice of God, under the powerful influence of 
his Holy Spirit, as the great agent in the work of falva¬ 
tion. They acknowledge the exclufive mediation of the 
man Chrift Jefus; they objeCl not to the poffible per- 
feverance of the faints, but glory in it as their happy 
privilege, yea, as abfolutely necelfary and eflential to 
falvation. They believe in the refurreCtion of the dead ; 
in the day of judgment; in the eternal felicity of the 
faints; and in the everlafting mifery of the damned, 
ivhole eternal condemnation they afcribe folely to their 
obftinate rejection of the fincere offers of falvation made 
to them in the golpel of our Lord Jefus Chrift.” Candid 
Enquiry, 1814. 
The Wefleyan Methodifts confider themfelves, in a 
great degree, as members of the Church of England : 
they willingly preach in our pulpits, and admire our 
Liturgy. In the account of the very baft Conference, 
publiihed by authority, fpeaking of the reception of two 
Lutheran minifters from Pruftia, they obferve —“ It was 
highly pleafing to the Conference, to hear in what ftrong 
terms of prail'e the minifter, who addrefled them, fpoke 
of the Liturgy of our Effablilhed Church. To this ad¬ 
mirable Liturgy* which, of all human compofitions upon 
divine fubjeCts holds, in our eftimation, the higheft place, 
he attributed, under God, the prefervation of true reli¬ 
gion in this country. He fpoke of the revival of true 
godlinefs which has taken place in the Effablilhed church, 
and amongft the Diflenters; and exprefled a hope that the 
Methodifts, who are a fort of medium betwixt both, will 
be the means of uniting them to each other.” 
Mr. Welley, in his “ Further Appeal to Men of Reafon 
and Religion,” has endeavoured to prove, by extracts 
from our Liturgy, Articles, and Homilies, that the Me¬ 
thodifts really believe and aft up to thole canons of the 
effablilhed church. Mr. Nightingale, in his Portraiture 
of Metliodifm, has given a fummary of this pamphlet, 
with the extracts appended; but thefe are too long for 
cur purpofe. Eut we lhall copy from that ufeful publica¬ 
tion fome particulars as to the points wherein the Wef¬ 
leyan and Whitefieldian Methodifts agree, and wherein 
they differ. 
“ There are fome leading points in both fyftems, which 
tend to bind them together in the fame general interefts. 
The doCtrines of the Trinity, fatisfaClion to Divine Juf- 
tice for the fins of men, by the bufferings of Chrift, ori¬ 
ginal or birth fin, fenfible, and, generally fpeaking, in- 
ftantaneous converfion, the neceffity of lupernatural in¬ 
fluences to good works, jnftificatiou by faith only, and the 
eternity of hell torments, are points in which thefe two 
branches of Methodifts agree. The chief points in which 
the Wefleyan and Whitefieldian Methodifts differ, are 
thofe refpeCling perfection, irrefiftible grace, the perfe- 
verance of the faith, imputed righteoufnefs, and elec¬ 
tion and reprobation. The former believe that Chrif- 
tians may, nay ought to attain a ftate of perfection before 
death; and that this may be attained in a moment, juft as 
they received the forgivenefs of their fins. This work 
they chiefly afiign to the third perfon in the Trinity, who 
is laid to commence his cleaniing operations in the foul 
the fame moment in which he ipeaks peace to the foul 
by the a'ofolution of the (inner from all his pall fins; 
and that he, the Holy Gholt, filently and gradually, 
fometimes almoft imperceptibly, but at other times as it 
were irreliftibly, proceeds to work upon the remains of 
inbred fin, till, in a moment, the old man with his deeds 
is wholly put off, the foul is purged from every ftain, 
and the faint (lands up, complete in the whole armour of 
God, not having lpot or wrinkle or any fuch thing ! This 
ftate of perfedtion need never be loft; and, indeed, it 
feems morally impoffible it ever flrould, becaule nothing 
but fin, we may luppofe, could rob the believer of lb 
precious a gift; and, he being freed from fin ; the world, 
the flefh, and the devil, having no more dominion over 
him ; having in fad loft the power of finning; it does not 
appear how any perfeCt Chriftian can ever become imper¬ 
fect, or any way in the lead finful. 
“ The Calviniftic Methodifts do not believe in the doc¬ 
trine of perfection ; but, as they admit that of divine in¬ 
fluence, they alfo are fometimes loft in devout and holy 
raptures. The doClrines of irrefiftible grace and of the 
final perfeverance of the faints are not held by the Wel- 
leyans 5 but are ftrenuoufly contended for by the Caf- 
vinifts. The Wefleyans rejeCt the Calviniftic doCtrine of 
imputed righteoufnefs, and admit that of imputed faith in 
lieu of it. But the grand point of difference is that re- 
fpeCting predomination ; which the Whitefieldians contend 
for on all occalions, but which the Wefleyans reject, 
becaufe it fuppofes Chrift to have died in vain : for the 
abfolutely eleCt mull have been faved without him, and 
the non-eleCl cannot be faved by him.” See Nightingale, 
p. 427-447. 
To thofe who are not Methodifts, the ftrangeft part of 
their.doCtrine is that of Hidden converfion, or attaining 
perfection in a moment. Upon this fubjeCt, therefore, 
we mull make a few remarks. Mr. Nightingale explains 
it as follows. Mr. Welley (he fays) had long entertained 
an opinion fimilar to that held by the Papilts and the 
Quakers ; viz. that it is poffible for a perfon to attain to 
a ftate of perfeClion even in this life. Barclay, the Apo- 
logill of the Quakers, thus deferibes this doCtrine : “ In 
whom this pure and holy birth is fully brought forth, 
the l^ody of death and fin comes to be crucified, and re¬ 
moved, and their hearts united and fubjetted to the 
truth ; fo as not to obey any luggeftions or temptations 
of the evil one, to be free from aCtual finning and tranf- 
grefling of the law of God, and in that refpeCl perfeCt. 
Yet doth this perfection Hill admit of a growth ; and 
there remaineth always in fome part a poflibility of fin¬ 
ning, when the mind doth not moll diligently and watch¬ 
fully attend unto the Lord.” 
Mr. Welley improved upon Barclay’s opinion. One of 
his improvements was, that this ftate of perfeClion might 
be 
