I have just came across this rather depressing item on the Jewish Chronicle blog alledging that John Wesley was anti-Semitic, even referring to Jews as "worms" whilst in America.
As far I can see see the JC correspondent was quoting just one source about which I think we need to know more.
Wesley's ill-fated visit to America was very low key and I don't think that he published much, if anything, during his visit. It was, in any case, before the "warming" of his heart at Aldersgate.
I'm fairly certain that the writer has got it wrong but don't have the full story. It demonstrates again the depths of anger among our Jewish neighbours for the ill concieved attack on Israel and Jews at our recent conference. In the current climate it would be good to nail this one. Any offers?
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
Posts
6 comments:
Hi,
as you say it's from a single source, it's from before he had his conversion experience and it contradicts what he says and the attitude put forward in his famous sermon "A Caution against Bigotry".
Can I ask though, at the risk of controversy if we're fighting a losing battle here? The charge is regularly made that protestantism is 'replacement theology', or is anti-semitic*, etc. The only forms of Christianity which seem to be acceptable are the John Hagee types that are uncritically pro-Israel or an extremely liberal Christianity which has no strong opinion on anything (i.e is Jesus necessary for salvation, was He really the messiah).
I'm not saying we shouldn't fix historical inaccuracies when they appear, nor am I saying we should be insensitive or offensive. But if, as it sometimes feels, you can be smeared as anti-Semitic just for being an evangelical protestant then maybe we just need to become thicker skinned?
*Just try reading a Melanie Phillips article on Christianity and Israel to see what I mean.
Hi,
I posted the above without reading the other posts on your blog so my apologies. I am only an occasional visitor.
I see the complete insensitivity towards the Jewish people and the issue of Israel and Palestine portrayed by the recent Methodist conference. I think any discussion on the plight of Arab Christians (including Palestinian Christians) which doesn't mention the oppression and hatred they face from radical Islamic groups or governments is a discussion which is badly wrong.
However there are two things which worry me. First is the need to try and equate both sides of the Israel/Palestine conflict as being equal. I hate (if that isn't an un-Christian term to use) Hamas, what it does and what it stands for. However I can't pretend that 40 Palestinian deaths are equal to 4 Israeli deaths. Therefore I can't look at say, last January's Gaza campaign and pretend the two sides were equal. Sometimes though if feels like I will be accused of bias or even anti-Semitism unless I constantly say that both sides are suffering equally.
Secondly, I support Israel's right to exist and exist as a Jewish state. However I don't see a justification for this view point from my reading of the Bible in the traditional sense. Rather it comes from seeing the need for such a state and the political belief that national groups should have their own states as part of a general commitment to justice. From the Bible as I read it I, as a non-Jew, have been allowed in as a full member of God's people because of what Christ did for me. Therefore I don't agree that Israel has a Biblical claim to certain parts of the Middle East. Neither does it mean that I see a need for a separate Jewish religion apart from non-Jews. This doesn't mean I want to see Judaism banned or anything like that but just that what Christ did was enough for both Jews and gentiles alike. Or to put it another way, if Christianity is true then it must be as true for Jews as it is for non-Jews or as true for Arabs at it is for Anglo Saxons. However, I again sometimes feel that if I say this I will get accused of 'replacement theology' and therefore anti-Semitism.
Sorry for the long post but I thought I better clarify what I meant as my comments above were not very measured.
Wesley was no more or less anti-Semitic than other Christians of his time. That's the real point: he was a man of his time, and should be read in that context. As Tom says, that comment was a very early one, and should be read against his later works. They show him to have moved on a considerable distance as a result of his Aldersgate experience. His sermon on "The Catholic Spirit" shows him to be remarkably ecumenical and even eirenical for his day.
A further point which should be made is that referring to Jews as "worms" is not specifically anti-Semitic, as the same word is commonly used in both Wesleys' writings for sinners, including themselves. In the context of the quote, it is no more than a reference to anyone who is not in Christ.
I am amazed at Jewish attacks on Christian thought as 'replacement theology' and the like. The bottom line of the existence of both Jew and Christian is that we believe Jesus was Messiah and Son of God, and they don't. Each position has consequences - why are we surprised at those consequences? Personally, I treasure the extent to which Christian thought and scripture has inherited from the Jews, and love to share in that common inheritance, but it surely cannot remove that basic disagreement.
The current spat seems to me that certain Jewish commentators are looking for anything they can use to bash the Methodists. If this is the best they can do, it will achieve nothing. Far better to engage with the real issue of the report and its subject matter - if we're wrong, produce the evidence to show that we're wrong and help us to get it right. But more importantly, deal with the crucial issue of justice for Gaza and the Palestinians.
Further to my last comment, please read yesterday's Ha’aretz article on the latest theft of Palestinian land by the Israeli authorities: http://networkedblogs.com/64yzV
As a comment notes, this is in breach of the 4th Geneva Convention, Article 53. This was a cynical piece of exploitation to drive people off their own land. Unfortunately, it appears to be typical of Israeli policy in recent years.
Thanks Tony and Tom. I don't think the story stacks up and I am hoping that a Methodist historian finds the time and energy to disprove it. John Wesley would have met many Jews on his travels - practically every coaching house in England at the time had special arrangements to provide utensils for kosher meals and doubtless John would have met his fellow guests.
I also noticed that Francis Asbury made no recorded reference to Jews - good or bad - in his journals and letters, so I think it unfair to see Methodism as a source of anti-Semitism as implied by this single source.
Rev Tony B is right - JW was a man of his time and his words are not always easily transposed into the today's context. If it is helpful JW said in his sermon 'On Bigotry' (I am trusting my memory here!): "If I were to condemn a muslim or a turk (presumably muslim) I would be no more than a bigot myself"
Post a Comment