Wesley, American Revolution, and Christian Engagement in Public Square

When John Wesley sent his Sunday Service of the Methodists in North America to the newly independent United States in the Fall of 1784, he included a number of items with his revision of the Prayer Book, including a letter sent to “Our Brethren in America.” In fact, he sent more than just a letter, for as Randy Maddox notes, this letter “was published as a two-sided flyer, so that Coke, Vasey, and Whatcoat could carry copies of it when they departed from King’s Road, Bristol, on Sept. 18, 1784” on their way to the United States (The Works of John Wesley, 30:268).