John Wesley — "To candid, reasonable men, I am not afraid to lay open what has been the course …"
To candid, reasonable men, I am not afraid to lay open what has been the course of my life.
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More from John Wesley
"I am not afraid of the devil himself."
"I have often thought, that if I were to choose a place of abode, it should be in a country where there were no rich people."
"Beware of judging men by their outward appearance, but judge them by their fruits."
"I have often thought, that if I were to choose a place to preach in, it should be in the open air."
"It is not the being in a place, but the being in a state, that makes us happy."
About John Wesley (1703-1791)
English Anglican cleric and founder of Methodism, whose open-air preaching and class-meeting structure created the largest 18th-century evangelical revival. Closely associated with Charles Wesley (his hymn-writing brother) and George Whitefield (early co-revivalist, later doctrinal opponent). For an intellectual contrast, see George Whitefield, Calvinist evangelical revivalist — Whitefield's predestinarian Calvinism vs Wesley's free-grace Arminian theology split the early Methodist movement permanently in the 1739-41 break. The founding evangelical Calvinist-Arminian schism — the two parallel evangelical traditions American Christianity descends from.
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Understanding this quote
What it means
Wesley is declaring radical transparency — he's willing to share the full account of his life with anyone open-minded and fair enough to consider it honestly. He's not concealing failures, doubts, or struggles. It's an invitation to honest scrutiny, a confident assertion that he has nothing to hide from those who will examine him with reason rather than prejudice or hostility.
Relevance to John Wesley
Wesley kept meticulous journals for over 50 years and published them widely — his life was literally an open book. Constantly accused of fanaticism and irregular ministry by the Anglican establishment, his consistent response was to invite examination of his conduct and motives. This transparency extended to his spiritual failures, including his pre-conversion struggles with assurance of faith before the transformative Aldersgate experience of 1738.
The era
In 18th-century England, Wesley operated amid the Enlightenment's premium on reason and evidence, alongside widespread suspicion of religious 'enthusiasm' — emotional piety was branded irrational and socially dangerous. The Anglican establishment viewed Methodist field preaching as subversive disorder. Wesley's appeal to 'candid, reasonable men' strategically deployed Enlightenment language to legitimize Methodism, arguing his methods and character could withstand rational inspection in an era that prized exactly that standard.
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