Victoria Park Methodist Church
Jameson Road, Winton, Bournemouth BH9 2QG
Contact Details:
Jameson Road
Winton
Bournemouth
BH9 2QG
The Methodist Story
The Methodist Story
You can find The Methodist Church all over the world today. There are around 6,100 Methodist Churches in Britain. These churches have a total membership of about 330,000 people . There are around one million people in Britain who in one way or another have a connection with the Methodist Church. There are 70 million such people across the world.
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John Wesley |
Where it all started
Methodism is the name given to the group of churches that arose out of the Christian revival of the 18th century, led by the Wesley brothers, John and Charles.
Dismayed by problems in the Church of England, the Wesley brothers led a movement of 'societies' within the Church of England, based on personal experience of Jesus Christ, Bible study, prayer and powerful preaching. John Wesley particularly wanted the church to reach out to ordinary people, and spent his life touring the country preaching. Many in the church saw him as a threat to the established order and banned him from using their church buildings, so he began to preach outside.
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Working people in particular identified with the powerful, practical faith he preached. They formed groups, studied together and worked to improve the conditions of the people around them. Charles Wesley became a famous hymn writer, and wrote hundreds of hymns, many of which are still sung today in lots of different churches. By the time of John Wesley's death in 1791 the Methodists had all but broken away from the Church of England. This separation became more definite in the next century, and the Methodist movement became a separate church. |
| There were many divisions and off-shoots during the 19th century, but during the last 50 years the Methodists in Britain have become one church again. |
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