Wesley's Designated Successor: The Life, Letters, and Literary Labours of the Rev. John William Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, ShropshireTyerman, L. (Luke)
Religion
Wesley's Designated Successor: The Life, Letters, and Literary Labours of the Rev. John William Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, Shropshire
Tyerman, L. (Luke)
Fletcher, John, 1729-1785
WHEN Fletcher finished his “Second Check to Antinomianism,” in “Three
Letters” to Walter Shirley, he began a “Vindication of the Doctrine of
Christian Perfection.” This, however, for a time, was laid aside; but
was afterwards completed, and embodied in his “Last Check to
Antinomianism.” The reason for this postponement was a somewhat sudden
determination to write upon the Unitarian Controversy, which was now as
prominent as the Calvinian one. A brief biographical episode will
explain the matter more fully.
Edward Elwall was born at Sedgley, in Staffordshire. He settled in
business at Wolverhampton, where he acquired the reputation of great
integrity in his dealings. He had not enjoyed the advantages of a
learned education, but he possessed a serious and inquisitive turn of
mind, and had good natural abilities. One of his first publications was
intended to prove that the fourth commandment, appointing the _seventh_
day of the week to be observed as the Sabbath, was binding on all
generations. As long as he continued in business, he constantly shut up
his shop on that day, and as regularly opened it on the succeeding one.
For this he was called a Jew. About the year 1714, he became
distinguished as an Unitarian, and published, “A true Testimony for God
and His sacred Law, being a Defence of the first Commandment of God,
against all Trinitarians under Heaven.” This drew on him the resentment
of the neighbouring clergy, who procured an indictment against him for
heresy and blasphemy, on which he was tried at Stafford Assizes. He
pleaded his own cause, and was acquitted. After this, he removed to
London, and became a member of the Seventh-day Baptist Church at
Mill-yard, Goodman’s Fields. Towards the end of life, he attended the
meetings of the Quakers, and was sometimes permitted to speak at them.
He died in London, at an advanced age, about the year 1745.
Elwall’s work “against all Trinitarians under Heaven” had recently been
re-published, and Fletcher was requested to answer it. Hence the
following, hitherto unpublished, letter, addressed to “the Rev. Walter
Sellon, at Ledsham, near Ferry-Bridge, Yorkshire.”
“MADELEY, _January 7, 1772_.
“MY DEAR FRIEND,—I thank you for yours. I hope Glazebrook[253] will be
more moderate, on account of some rubs which his new Calvinistic zeal
has procured him.
“My reason for troubling you soon with an answer is to make a request.
I have laid by my Third ——[254], which is a vindication of the
doctrine of Christian perfection. A pamphlet (the third edition) has
lately been published at Birmingham, and meets with great success. The
author is E. Elwall, a Socinian Quaker, who was tried for blasphemy at
Stafford, and came off with flying colours, after fully denying the
Godhead of Christ, and His atonement.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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