Church and Chapel in Industrializing Society

D. R. Wilson

Church and Chapel in Industrializing Society

Anglican Ministry and Methodism in Shropshire, 1760–1785

PETER LANG

New York • Bern • Frankfurt • Berlin

Brussels • Vienna • Oxford • Warsaw

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

Names: Wilson, David, author.

Title: Church and chapel in industrializing society:

Anglican ministry and Methodism in Shropshire, 1760–1785 / D. R. Wilson.

Description: New York: Peter Lang Publishing, 2017.

Series: American University studies VII. Theology and religion; vol. 352 | ISSN 0740-0446

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Identifiers: LCCN 2016014989 | ISBN 978-1-4331-3013-7 (hardcover: alk. paper)

ISBN 978-1-4539-1805-0 (ebook pdf) | ISBN 978-1-4331-3844-7 (epub)

ISBN 978-1-4331-3845-4 (mobi) | DOI 10.3726/b10499

Subjects: LCSH: Fletcher, John, 1729–1785.

Madeley (Shropshire, England)—Church history—18th century.

Methodist Church (England)—Relations—Church of England.

Church of England—Relations—Methodist Church (England)

Classification: LCC BX8495.F6 W55 2016 | DDC 287.092—dc23

LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2016014989

Bibliographic information published by Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek. Die Deutsche Nationalbibliothek lists this publication in the “Deutsche Nationalbibliografie”; detailed bibliographic data are available on the Internet at http://dnb.d-nb.de/.

Cover photo by D. R. Wilson: Ironbridge Parish Church and Tontine Hotel, viewed from the Iron Bridge, Historic Madeley

© 2017 Peter Lang Publishing, Inc., New York 29 Broadway, 18th floor, New York, NY 10006 www.peterlang.com

All rights reserved.
Reprint or reproduction, even partially, in all forms such as microfilm, xerography, microfiche, microcard, and offset strictly prohibited.

About the author

D. R. Wilson (Ph.D., University of Manchester; M.Div., George Fox University) currently teaches courses in church history, theology, religion, pastoral studies, and ethics at George Fox Evangelical Seminary and Warner Pacific College. He is a Junior Fellow of the Manchester Wesley Research Centre and has chaired sessions and presented at the American Academy of Religion. Wilson is a contributing author to several books, including an entry in Oxford Encyclopedia of Biblical Interpretation and chapters in Dissent and the Bible in Britain, c.1650–1950; Religion, Gender, and Industry: Exploring Church and Methodism in a Local Setting; Making and Remaking Saints in Nineteenth-Century Britain; and Covenant Making: The Fabric of Relationship. He is also the author of several articles in the academic journal Wesley and Methodist Studies and co-editor of Holy Imagination: Rethinking Social Holiness. This is his first monograph.

About the book

Church and Chapel in Industrializing Society: Anglican Ministry and Methodism in Shropshire, 1760–1785 envelopes a new and provocative revisionist history of Methodism and the Church of England in the eighteenth century, challenging the Church’s perception as a varied body with myriad obstacles which it dutifully and substantially confronted (if not always successfully) through the maintenance of an ecclesiastically and theologically rooted pastoral ideal. This model was lived out ‘on the ground’ by the parish clergy, many of whom were demonstrably innovative and conscientious in fulfilling their pastoral vocation vis-à-vis the new demands presented by the social, ecclesiastical, political, and economic forces of the day, not least of which was the rise of industrialisation. Contrary to the effete arguments of older cadre church historians, heavily reliant on the nineteenth-century denominational histories and primarily the various forms of Methodism, this book provides a thoroughly researched study of the ministry of John William Fletcher, incumbent of the parish of Madeley at the heart of the industrial revolution, whose own work along with that of his Evangelically minded Anglican-Methodist colleagues found the Church of England sufficiently strong and remarkably flexible enough to rigorously and creatively do the work of the Church alongside their non-Anglican Evangelical counterparts. Despite the manifest challenges of industrializing society, residual dissent, and competition from the Church’s rivals, the Establishment was not incapable of competing in the religious marketplace.

This eBook can be cited

This edition of the eBook can be cited. To enable this we have marked the start and end of a page. In cases where a word straddles a page break, the marker is placed inside the word at exactly the same position as in the physical book. This means that occasionally a word might be bifurcated by this marker.

ADVANCE PRAISE FOR

Church and Chapel in Industrializing Society

“D. R. Wilson provides an insightful study not just of one of the closest friends and associates of Charles and John Wesley, but of the dynamics in eighteenthcentury parish life that provided both fertile ground and frequent resistance to the spread of early Methodism in England. Highly recommended.”

—Randy L. Maddox, William Kellon Quick Professor of Wesley and Methodist Studies, Duke Divinity School

“D. R. Wilson’s book is a major contribution to the study of Methodism ‘on the ground’ as it developed within eighteenth-century Anglicanism. Based on thorough research in the manuscripts of John and Mary Fletcher, the Wesleys, and Church of England records housed in archives in the United Kingdom and the United States, this study revises our picture of the relationship of Methodism to the Church and the claims regarding John Fletcher as ‘Wesley’s Designated Successor.’ Solidly rooted in the study of a local parish, this book will surely find relevance in contemporary church movements to revitalize our understanding of the church parish and pastoral ministry.”

—R. Larry Shelton, Emeritus Professor of Theology,
George Fox Evangelical Seminary

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations

Preface

Acknowledgments

Fletcher-Madeley Chronology

List of Abbreviations

Chapter One: Introduction

Chapter Two: Madeley in 1760

Chapter Three: Church Services and Patterns of Worship

Chapter Four: Church Extension: ‘Chapel’ Ministry and the Societies in Madeley

Chapter Five: Tensions in Church and Chapel

Chapter Six: Pastoralia

Chapter Seven: Conflict, Confrontation and Conciliation

Chapter Eight: Conclusion

Appendix One: Fletcher’s Sermons

Appendix Two: Biographical Index

Appendix Three: Visiting Preachers in Madeley 1760–1785

Appendix Four: Fletcher’s Works with Various Collected Editions Noted

Appendix Five: Calendar of the Correspondence of John Fletcher←vii | viii→

Appendix Six: Maps

Bibliography

Index

←viii | ix→

Illustrations

Map 1: Madeley Parish in the Eighteenth Century

Map 2: Clergy of the Coalfield to c. 1785

Map 3: Fletcher’s Extra-Parochial Preaching Journeys

Map 4: The Shropshire Coalfield

Map 5: Madeley Meetings 1760–1785←ix | x→ ←x | xi→

Preface

There is yet no complete collection of the Works of John Fletcher. Indeed, there have been numerous editions published since the 1790s, with the earliest indexed edition, edited by Joseph Benson, being issued from 1806 to 1809 in nine volumes, with a supplemental tenth volume. However, the dispersal of Fletcher’s various letters, treatises, and likenesses after his death made any kind of comprehensive anthology nearly impossible, not to mention the fact that many of his extant manuscripts were written in French and required translation if they were to be published for an English audience. Many of these are yet to be translated and are, for the most part, not even referenced in some of the most significant studies on Fletcher (the works of Streiff and Forsaith excepted). Furthermore, even the most complete editions of Fletcher’s Works vary in their offerings, as would be expected, with formerly unknown works being added to later editions. Frustratingly, however, with each new issue of Fletcher’s works not everything from former editions was included, requiring reference to several editions varying from four to nine volumes between the 1806 and the 1873 editions. The reader of this book is referred to the abbreviations page which identifies the versions used in my references here. Also, a number of Fletcher’s writings (especially letters, but also a few sermons) were published only in periodicals but not in his collected Works. These have been referenced like any other periodical article in the footnotes but are listed with Fletcher’s Works in the bibliography.←xi | xii→

Additionally, when Fletcher’s ‘Letters’ were published in the collections of Works, they were edited down from the fuller version printed in Posthumous Pieces (ed. M. Horne, 1791), while some previously unpublished versions and some more complete editions of other letters were added. Thus, I have devised a rough hierarchy of sources when using Fletcher’s letters. First, where English holograph originals or verifiable manuscript copies are available, I have used these above all other sources. Second, where French holograph originals or manuscript copies are available, I have relied first upon the translations of these in Peter Forsaith’s recently published Unexampled Labours (UL) and only latterly upon my own translations if a letter was not part of Forsaith’s project and otherwise not translated. All quotations and references to Fletcher’s letters written in French to Charles Wesley, are cited in this book by their manuscript references to point the reader to extant sources, are taken from UL. Third, there are two primary copy-book collections of Fletcher’s letters, some of which have not been published and for which no original is extant. These were transcribed by interested parties. One of these collections is to be found in the Everett-Tyerman volumes at the MARC,1 and these appear to be largely accurate based not only on the style of writing and meticulous detail in copying even the repetition of a word when repeated from the bottom of a manuscript page to the top of the next (presumably in the holograph) but copied in the main body in the transcriptions and also in the events related which can be confirmed by other sources.

The second of these collections was transcribed by one of Lady Huntingdon’s first biographers, A.C.H. Seymour. These transcriptions of letters from Fletcher to Lady Huntingdon were not printed as part of Forsaith’s collection due to his incredulity regarding their authenticity based on concerns expressed by Edwin Welch in his biography of Lady Huntingdon. Some of the letters were extracted in Seymour’s biography of the Countess.² It should be noted, however, that the author of the present volume has utilized the manuscript volume of letter transcripts used by Seymour, which is extant at MARC. Despite Welch’s claim that Seymour was generally unreliable, he seems to make an exception regarding the Fletcher letters, stating that Seymour had early nineteenth-century transcripts of Fletcher letters (i.e. not fabrications) and that there was more reliability concerning these than other of Seymour’s sources.³ Furthermore, Seymour’s transcripts demonstrate a significant correspondence between Fletcher’s dates and descriptions of events and those same dates and descriptions in Fletcher’s holograph letters to others such as the Wesleys, James Ireland, George Whitefield, and others, suggesting a more general if cautious expectation of reliability. The Seymour transcripts volume is shelved with the John Fletcher folios in MARC and referenced in this book as Fl. Vol. 2 [i.e. Fletcher Volume 2]. A number of letters from Fletcher, as←xii | xiii→ well as letters from others concerning Fletcher and his ministry, are to be found in the recently published edition of the Countess’s correspondence, by J.R. Tyson and B.S. Schlenther.4 Also, I have been able to locate additional letters not listed in Streiff. A listing of these ‘additions’ can be found in the Appendices.

Fourth and finally, where only published editions but no holographs were available, I have relied upon: (1) the letters published in the eighteenth century in their earliest editions if available, including various collections of letters and letters published in the Arminian Magazine or its continuation, the Wesleyan Methodist Magazine and especially those published in Posthumous Pieces if not found earlier; (2) copies published in various editions of Fletcher’s Works as well as in various periodicals and journals, including most recently, some published in the Proceedings of the Wesley Historical Society; and (3) letters published only in French and for which no holograph or copy manuscripts are extant. The above sources can be found in the bibliography, and a full listing of Fletcher’s correspondence is in Appendix Five. Due to the frequency with which Fletcher’s manuscript letters are referenced, only the sender(s), recipient(s) and date is listed in the footnotes (e.g. JF→CH, 19 Nov. 1760). Successive references to the previous sender/recipient are listed as ‘ibid.’ followed by the date of the letter. For full archival reference to Fletcher’s correspondence, the reader is referred to the complete listing in the appendices. Letters published in Posthumous Pieces are given with the same information as manuscript letters (in order to provide the reader a sense of the chronology of Fletcher’s letters) followed by a reference to the page numbers in the First Edition of this work, abbreviated as FL (for Fletcher’s Letters, the title by which Posthumous Pieces was commonly known in the eighteenth century and which was stamped on the spine of some early editions).

One further note is necessary regarding Fletcher’s letters. His correspondence with his parish when he was away was addressed variously to individual parishioners, to the curates, and to the societies. However, due to the extensive addresses, such as that of his letter of 30 October 1765,⁵ ‘To those who love the Lord Jesus Christ in, and about Madeley’, abbreviations have typically been used instead of the full address. For instance, this was Streiff’s convention. Unfortunately however, the abbreviations do not always translate well. Thus, Streiff lists this letter as being to the ‘Societies in and Around Madeley’, whereas, in both content and ascription it is clear that this was a letter to his parishioners more generally, not just those in the Madeley societies. I have also utilized abbreviated addresses in the footnotes for references to Fletcher’s pastoral letters (most of which are to be found in FL). However, due to the fact that this book is focussed on Fletcher’s work in both church and chapel, it is important to be specific as to whom he was writing when he corresponded with his parish. Thus, I have created a different←xiii | xiv→ convention for abbreviating. Letters addressed in any variation to his parishioners in general are referenced as ‘JF→Madeley Parishioners’. Letters addressed specifically to the religious societies are referenced as ‘JF→Madeley Societies’. Letters to individuals follow the referencing described in the previous paragraph.

1. Everett/Tyerman Transcripts, 3 volumes, MARC: MAW 657 A–C.

2. L&TCH; E. Welch, Spiritual Pilgrim: A Reassessment of the Life of the Countess of Huntingdon (Cardiff, 1995), 211–14. Cf. UL, 4.

3. Welch, Spiritual Pilgrim, 213.

4. MOEM.

5. See note in Appendix Five for the proper dating of this letter.←xiv | xv→

Acknowledgments

All research, however isolated, as it moves into text and subsequent publication, is a communal work and by nature dialogical, and I am grateful for all who have been part of that community with me. Jeremy Gregory’s (my doctoral supervisor) expert advice and support, have been indispensable. Gareth Lloyd was of immense help as the Methodist Archivist at the Rylands, and I am grateful for his scholarship and encyclopaedic knowledge of the multitude of manuscripts I called upon, and to Peter Nockles for his assistance with printed works in the Methodist Archives. Countless are the archive and library staff from London to Hereford to Lichfield, from Cambridge to Oxford, and in particular, in the Shrewsbury Record Office, who kindly and knowledgeably assisted me. I am as much indebted to Peter Forsaith for his unequalled knowledge of the Fletcher corpus as I am for his friendship. At various stages I have discussed my research with John Walsh, Bill Gibson, Joanna Cruickshank, Suzanne Schwarz, Randy Maddox, and Bill Gibson, each of whose insights have been invaluable. Phyllis Mack’s commitment to rigorous scholarship and study of Mary Bosanquet Fletcher and the women of Methodism have been an inspiration. Geordan Hammond has shared his acumen in eighteenth-century and Wesleyan studies as well as moral support. Much appreciation is due to Larry Shelton and Dan Brunner as scholars and friends, and to the faculty of George Fox Evangelical Seminary. For all of the benefits arising from the preceding host of advisors, the errors which remain are mine alone. I am enduringly grateful: for ←xv | xvi→ the continual support of my church families, for the Andresen clan, and Neal and Amy, who visited us in Manchester and made sure that the process was not without friendship and laughter; for Chris Lyons whose friendship knows no limits, and for Brian Borin who has been an enduring friend and supporter from long before this project was ever considered and with his family has given unflagging encouragement. M. and P. and D. (and now K.) have walked with me through every aspect of the writing journey; their inspiration silently runs throughout my writing. My parents and whole family have persevered with me and I am blessed by their support. Finally, I am grateful to Lisa, supportive wife, faithful friend, and true companion. There were times too numerous to count that the process of writing this book seemed impossible, yet her words of faith, hope, and unfailing love pushed me to be a better scholar, but more importantly, a better person. And finally, I am grateful to the time allowed by our little Avery Alexandra who gave up time with her Papa to let him get this book to press all while offering her love and laughter along the way. ←xvi | xvii→