John Wesley (1703-1791), the founder of Methodism, is
honoured by this 1989 statue in St Paul's churchyard. It is a bronze copy of the original marble
statue of 1825 which stands at the Methodist Central Hall, Westminster.
John, the son of a Church of England Rector, was educated
for the ministry at Oxford University.
It was while he was a student there that he felt perturbed at the
conduct of his fellow students and masters.
He had expected a higher moral environment and was shocked by the apathy
and behaviour of his peers. Finding some
like-minded individuals John began meeting on a regular basis to study, pray and
then put the gospel into action by ministering to those in need in Oxford
prison and work house.
This methodical nature made others nickname them as ‘Bible
Moths’, and ‘Methodists’ – a label that was eventually adopted as the name for
the movement. John did not intend to
make a new religion, he just wanted to reform the Church of England and was
happy to step over parish boundaries to deliver that message. His attempts were rejected by most ministers,
and caused him to declare that “The world is my parish.” His was too urgent of a message to be
constrained by man-made limitations.
