First Methodist Church – Methodist Alley 1791 - Francis Ashbury

Two streets down along Hanover Street toward the water. On the right is an alley called Hanover Avenue, once known as “Methodist Alley.” This was the first home of the Methodists in the North End, where the first Methodist church in Boston was built at number 16 in 1795. They worshipped here until 1828 when they moved to North Bennett Street.

Methodism was founded by the teachings of John Wesley. He was an English cleric, theologian, and evangelist who founded the movement from within the Church of England and did not separate it during his lifetime. Methodism thrived in America thanks to the First and Second Great Awakenings beginning in the 1700s. American Methodism owes its roots to itinerant preacher Francis Ashbury who organized preaching circuits across the frontier. This is another example of how Christianity further fractioned off into varying sects in history.

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Methodists were definitely in the minority in early colonial times. They arrived later on the scene and managed to escape the majority of Puritan persecution, although they were considered Anglican prior to the war. (See King’s Chapel for origins, and Methodist 1828 for fractions and reactions to war efforts)

When the American Revolutionary War broke out in 1775, Francis Ashbury and James Dempster were the only British Methodist lay ministers to remain in America. Asbury spent 45 years in the colonies and founded several schools becoming celebrated as one of the founders of the Methodist Church. However, he remained hidden during the war and ventured occasionally back into Maryland. Sometimes this had the effect of compromising his parishioners. Following the American Revolution most of the Anglican clergy who had been in America came back to England.

After the war of 1812 pro-British leaders in Upper Canada demonstrated a strong hostility to American influences, including republicanism, which shaped its policies. Immigration from the United States was discouraged and favor was shown to the Anglican Church as opposed to the more Americanized Methodist Church.

The independence of the United States stimulated American Methodists, as it did their brethren in the Church of England, with whom the Methodists had considered themselves "in communion," to organize themselves as an independent, American church. This happened at the Christmas Conference in Baltimore in 1784, where Francis Asbury and Thomas Coke were elected as superintendents of the new Methodist Episcopal Church. Asbury was ordained as deacon, elder, and superintendent. American Methodists adopted the title of bishop for their leaders three years later.

What fruitage did these spiritual leaders produce? Mt 7:15-20. Consider John 17:16 vs Acts 20:29, 30. What would Jesus have said seeing this?

-Source Links-

https://www.loc.gov/exhibits/religion/rel03.html#obj099 (Image of the Ordination of Bishop Ashbury)

https://www.nps.gov/articles/000/siege-of-boston-map.htm

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1806_NorthEnd_Boston_byNorman_detail_BPL10103.png

https://www.bu.edu/sthlibrary/archives/neccah/heritage-trails/

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Francis_Asbury

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Methodism_in_the_United_States

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/War_of_1812