John Wesley
Born: June 28, 1703
Died: March 2, 1791
John Wesley was an Anglican priest who came from England to serve as a pastor in Georgia, but after his ministerial return to England, he felt a strong calling from God to start his own ministry. He traveled widely to preach and commission preachers, start aid groups and schools, provide education and catechesis, and collect money for charitable causes.
Wesley was a supporter of the abolition of slavery and of women preachers, two controversial opinions for that time. As the father of a major Protestant denomination whose roots spread into many others—even the Roman Catholic hymnals found in church pews everywhere are rife with songs or tunes Wesley wrote—we can learn from Wesley as an ecumenical practice. He had a very rich intellectual theology and was an organizational genius, full of fervor and enthusiasm, with a strong moral compass and a deep commitment to figuring out how to live a Christian life well. Although we may differ in some components of our Christian identity, we as Catholics can appreciate Wesley’s witness and wisdom.
Image: George Romney via Wikimedia Commons
