History Of Methodist Reform, Volume I - Media Sabda Org

English Founder and its American Pioneer. True, fond and partial historians and living advocates
today see in it an instrumentality which they would give the chief place as a factor in the success of
the great movement, did it not abolish all distinction between divine doctrines and human
ordinances. With almost brazen fetters of organic law-structure, and so creating an administrative
sweep and swing which have held tenaciously to a centralizing oligarchy since the days of Asbury,
McKendree, and Soule, no question can arise as to its efficiency. Its momentum in the concrete, and
its seven eyes of observation in the abstract, are equaled only by its power of abuse and evil in that
its progress as a system has been against the grain of human nature under its best conditions, and
subversive of all the ideals of Christian manhood and civilian rights. From the Fluvanna struggle
onward to this day the ecclesiastical system has been assaulted from within with schism and division
and ceaseless unrest; and it is the object of these pages to show that this system was the fundamental
error in its organization, and that but for it Methodism might have been an organic unit today on both
continents.
In June, 1789, Asbury in his Journal notes his sententious wisdom in two instances. Speaking of
preaching and preaching places," To begin at the right end of the work is to go first to the poor; these
will, the rich may possibly, hear the truth: there are among us who have blundered here." Once more
as a key to that exclusive denominationalism which has ever characterized the Methodist Episcopal
Church — it is not claimed wrongfully, all the conditions considered — he declares, "The
Methodists ought to preach in their own houses; I have done with the houses of other people." In
September he writes, "I preached at Bush Forest Chapel: this was one of the first houses that was
built for the Methodists in the state of Maryland and one of the first societies was formed here." It
was probably next to Strawbridge's log chapel. In April, 1790, he writes, "The unsettled state of my
stomach and bowels makes life and labor a burden." These are picked-up threads which might have
been wrought into the fabric earlier.
It will be remembered that Mr. Hammett, the chief of the missionaries who accompanied Dr.
Coke for Nova Scotia, but landed in the West Indies in 1789, had been left by him at Kingston in
Jamaica, where he built a chapel and suffered much, though exercising unwonted zeal and displaying
abilities of a high order so that, when Coke returned the second time in 1791, he found him in a
"deplorable condition, through excessive fatigue and violent opposition," says Drew. Dr. Coke was
advised by the resident physicians to remove Hammett to the continent for the recovery of his health.
They accordingly reached Charleston, S. C., January 27, 1791. He was placed in charge of the church
through Coke's suggestion and influence. Advantage will be taken of this mention to cover an
episode in Methodist history. There can be no doubt that Hammett derived his cue as to Asbury and
his methods from Dr. Coke. They were close friends, and Hammett entered fully into Coke's
grievances, which, though kept out of sight, were not forgotten, as will presently be seen. He shared
in his prejudices against Asbury. Hammett soon made a wonderful impression in Charleston, broke
from Asbury's authority, seceded with a large portion of the society, and built a commodious and
expensive church of which he was independent pastor. He opened correspondence with Wesley, it
is alleged, and the old man, suffering from the rebellious conduct of his "Dear Franky," was ready
to listen to any tale earnestly and plausibly put as Hammett was capable of doing, and so secured
letters from Wesley recognizing him as in the "regular succession" despite Asbury's ignoring of him.
This alleged fact did not come out, however, for fifty years afterward. Champions of a cause have
a wonderful facility for concealing information that may militate against their theory until some