M E T II O D I S T. 
be “ attained in a moment, during preaching, prayer, read¬ 
ing, conversation, or any other fpiritual exercile; nay, I 
have known it take place while the perfon was fmoking 
a pipe of tobacco !” 
Againft the doCtrine itfelf, Dr. Whitehead thinks there 
can be no juft objections : “but, (fays lie) this inftanta- 
neous manner of attaining perfection in the Chriftian 
temper, feems to have no foundation in J'cripture ; it even 
appears contrary to reafon, and to the conftitution and or¬ 
der which God has eltablilhed through all animated na¬ 
ture, where we fee no inltance of any thing arriving at 
perfection in a moment. And, though there can be no 
doubt but fome of thofe who made profeffions of this 
happy Hate were both fincere and deeply pious, perhaps 
beyond molt of their brethren, yet there feems juft reafon 
to affirm they were miftaken in the judgment they formed 
of their own attainments.” 
Notwithftanding thefe admiffions by a very refpeCtable 
and refpeCted member of the connexion, we find that Hid¬ 
den converfion and juftification is ftill conlidered as very 
frequently occurring, and ftill oftener expeCted and longed 
for: for the Methodifts ftill hold, as it was laid down by 
Wefley, that, “ in whatever moment a man believes (in 
a Chriftian fenfe of the word), he is juftified, his fins are 
blotted out, and his faith is counted to him for righte- 
oufnefs.” We have already given an account of the con¬ 
verfion of Mr. Wefley himfelf; and the following we copy 
from the Methodift Magazine of the laft month, (Sept. 
i3i6.) “ Mr. Shadford’s mother was convinced of fin, by 
means of over-hearing him and an old man converfing in 
private on the fubjeCt of their Chriftian experience. She 
had been ItriCtly moral, had feared God, and confcienti- 
oufly endeavoured to ferve him, according to the degree 
of knowledge Die poffefled. But, notwithftanding her 
former regularity of conduCt, when (lie was thoroughly 
awakened, her diftrefs of mind fo affeCled her body, upon 
feveral occafions, that Are was like a perfon convtilled. 
After fome time, under a fermon preached by Mr. Samuel 
Meggitt, God fct IterJ'oul at liberty, lhed his love abroad 
in her heart, and enabled her to rejoice with joy unfpeak- 
able and full of glory. 
“ About this time, Mr. S. vifited his fifter, in order to 
inform her what God had done for his foul. When he 
began to converfe on the fubjeCt of inward religion, llie 
imagined he was befide himfelf 5 but at length llie liftened 
to him with ferioufnefs and attention. After he had re¬ 
turned home, Ihe began to revolve in her mind what he 
had laid to her; and thought, ‘ How can my brother have 
any view to deceive me ? What intereft can he have in 
fo doing? Certainly, my ftate is worfe than I imagine; 
he fees my ftate, and I do not. Belides, he feems to be 
another man, for he does not look, or fpeak, or aCt, as he 
ufed to do.’ So powerfully did the amazing change which 
Ihe obferved in her brother, together with the pious in- 
ftruftions which he gave her, operate upon her mind, that 
Ihe could not reft till Hie came to her father's houfe, from 
whence Ihe returned home under a ltrong conviction that 
(he was a guilty miferable (inner. Encouraged, from a 
thorough perfuafion that God had begun a good work in 
his fifter, Mr. S. vifited her Ihortly after; and took her 
with him to hear Mr. Meggitt preach. The fermon 
pleafed her much. A love-feajl was held after preaching; 
and, as (lie defined to attend it, (lie was admitted. As the 
people were finging a hymn on Chrift’s coming to judg¬ 
ment, (he looked up, and faw all the people finging with 
vifible joy in their countenances. She thought, “ If Chrill 
was to come to judgment now, I (hall go to hell, and 
they will all go to heaven.” Inftantly (lie funk down, 
as if dying, and lay fome time before (he was able to 
walk home. She continued praying and waiting upon 
God for about a fortnight; when, one day going to the 
tcell to fetch mater, (he found the God of Jacob open to 
her thirfty foul a living fountain of divine confolation; 
and hence, asJhe returned from the well, her foul magnified 
the Lord, and her fpirit rejoiced in God her Saviour.” 
Whatever may be thought of the methodift plan of 
doCtrine and dilcipline with regard to fome points, and 
that divine million which one of their preachers aflerts 
for them, they feem in general to require no ordinary 
kind of fitnefs for the work of an evangelift. Their mode 
of initiating minifters is now known. “ Before any one 
can be received on trial amongft us,” obferves Mr. T. 
Kelk, in his printed Letter to the Rev. Mr. Carlyon, “ it 
is necefiary that he (hould have been a member of the 
fociety for fome confiderable time ; that he (hould have 
aCted as a local preacher,” a preliminary though gratui¬ 
tous rank in the Methodift fyftem ; “ that he (hould be re¬ 
commended by the quarterly meeting to the diftriCt meet¬ 
ing; and by that, again, to the Conference. That he 
fnould then travel four years upon trial; and being well 
recommended by the people where he has laboured, and 
by the preachers who have laboured with him, he (hall 
then be received in full connexion .” The proper time for 
doing this is at a Conference. After ferious foletnn 
prayer, the following queftions are propofed to each can->- 
didate, by the prefident, in the prefence of near two hun¬ 
dred travelling preachers, and feveral hundred of hearers, 
and which he is required to anfvver as in the orefence of 
God !—“ Have you a lively faith in Chrift ?—Do you en¬ 
joy a clear manifeftation of the love of God to your foul ? 
—Have you conftant power over all fin ?—Do you expeCl 
to be perfeCt in love in this life; and do you really defire 
and earneftly feek it ?—Are you refolved to devote your- 
felf wholly to God, and to his work?—Do you know the 
Methodift plan of doCtrine and dilcipline ?—Are you de¬ 
termined to employ all your time in the work of God ?—• 
Will you preach every morning and evening, when op¬ 
portunity ferves ?—Will you diligently inftruCt the chil¬ 
dren, where you can ?—Will you viiit from houfe to 
houfe, promoting perlonal and family religion, where it 
may be done ?—Will you recommend falling and prayer,, 
both by precept and example ?”—Having anfwered the 
queftions fatisfaCtorily, the Methodift preacher (adds Mr. 
Kelk) receives an appropriate and impreffive addrefs from 
the prefident, and is again recommended to God, and his 
work, by folemn prayer. His warrant is then given him. 
Finally, the prefident hands to him the Minutes of the 
Conference, unto which he is now joined, infcribed thus : 
“ You think it your duty to call finners to repentance; 
make full proof hereof, and we (hall rejoice to receive 
you as a fellow-labourer.” 
The number of “ regular travelling preachers now 
fiationcd in various parts throughout the world, and not 
included in the preceding account of Numbers in So¬ 
ciety,” is 1661. The number of “ local preachers” as 
they are called, including all who are on trial, and not 
in full connexion, is upwards of 4000. 
Some diflenfions had exilted among the Welleyan Me¬ 
thodifts at the time of the deceafe of their founder; but 
an interval of fix years elapfed before their difference of 
fentiment produced an actual feparation. The liberties 
of their church, and the rights of the people, formed the 
grounds of difpute. On pretence of giving due lupport 
to the plan of itinerancy, fome leading minifters had en¬ 
deavoured to obtain an exorbitant degree of power over 
the community and junior preachers ; and they managed 
the Conference in a way which tended to lecure this 
power. Difguited at thefe arbitrary proceedings, Mr. Kil- 
liam, and other members, applied to the general alfembly 
for a redrefs of grievances, and for an admiffion of the 
laity to a proper lhare in the general government of the 
fociety. Repeated applications and remonftrances being 
wholly fruitlefs, and Mr. ICilham being expelled from the 
fraternity by the ruling party, about 5000 difcontented 
members feceded from the connection in the year 1797, 
and formed independent arrangements on a popular balis. 
This fociety is called the New Methodift Connexion, or 
New Itinerancy ; fome call them Kilhamites, from the name 
of their founder, (who died at Nottingham the following 
year, Dec. 20, 1798, by a bone lticking in his throat;}. 
s The 
