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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

Name: Wesley's Designated Successor: The Life, Letters, and Literary Labours of the Rev. John William Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, Shropshire
Author: Tyerman, L. (Luke)

Tyerman, L. (Luke)

Fletcher, John, 1729-1785

“_The Scripture Scales_,” however, were published separately, and not
until the year was ending. First of all, Fletcher issued a 12mo. volume
of 264 pages, entitled, “The First Part of an Equal Check to Pharisaism
and Antinomianism, containing, I. An Historical Essay on the Danger of
parting Faith and Works. II. Salvation by the Covenant of Grace, A
Discourse preached in the Parish Church of Madeley, April 18, and May 9,
1773. III. A Scriptural Essay on the astonishing Rewardableness of
Works, according to the Covenant of Grace. IV. An Essay on Truth, or, A
rational Vindication of the Doctrine of Salvation by Faith, with a
dedicatory Epistle to the Right Hon. the Countess of Huntingdon. By the
Author of the Checks to Antinomianism. Shrewsbury: Printed by J.
Eddowes: and sold at the Foundery; and by J. Buckland, in Paternoster
Row, London; by T. Mills in Bath; and S. Aris in Birmingham. 1774.”

Fletcher’s Preface is dated, Madeley, May 21, 1774. The following
extracts from it convey an idea of the scope of his book:—

  “I. The first piece of this Check was designed for a preface to the
  Discourse that follows it; but as it swelled far beyond my intention,
  I present it to the reader under the name of _An Historical Essay_,
  which makes way for the tracts that follow.

  “II. With respect to the Discourse, I must mention what engages me to
  publish it. In 1771, I saw the propositions called the ‘_Minutes_.’
  Their author invited me to ‘_review the whole affair_.’ I did so; and
  soon found that I had ‘leaned too much toward Calvinism,’ which, after
  mature consideration, appeared to me exactly to coincide with
  _speculative_ Antinomianism; and the same year I publicly acknowledged
  my error.[305]

  “When I had thus openly confessed that I was involved in the guilt of
  _many of my brethren_, and that I had so leaned towards _speculative_
  as not to have made a proper stand against _practical_ Antinomianism,
  who could have thought that one of my most formidable opponents[306]
  would have attempted to screen his mistakes behind some passages of a
  manuscript sermon which I preached twelve years ago, and of which, by
  some means or other, he has got a copy?

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Opening the text

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

“_The Scripture Scales_,” however, were published separately, and not
until the year was ending. First of all, Fletcher issued a 12mo. volume
of 264 pages, entitled, “The First Part of an Equal Check to Pharisaism
and Antinomianism, containing, I. An Historical Essay on the Danger of
parting Faith and Works. II. Salvation by the Covenant of Grace, A
Discourse preached in the Parish Church of Madeley, April 18, and May 9,
1773. III. A Scriptural Essay on the astonishing Rewardableness of
Works, according to the Covenant of Grace. IV. An Essay on Truth, or, A
rational Vindication of the Doctrine of Salvation by Faith, with a
dedicatory Epistle to the Right Hon. the Countess of Huntingdon. By the
Author of the Checks to Antinomianism. Shrewsbury: Printed by J.
Eddowes: and sold at the Foundery; and by J. Buckland, in Paternoster
Row, London; by T. Mills in Bath; and S. Aris in Birmingham. 1774.”

Fletcher’s Preface is dated, Madeley, May 21, 1774. The following
extracts from it convey an idea of the scope of his book:—

  “I. The first piece of this Check was designed for a preface to the
  Discourse that follows it; but as it swelled far beyond my intention,
  I present it to the reader under the name of _An Historical Essay_,
  which makes way for the tracts that follow.

  “II. With respect to the Discourse, I must mention what engages me to
  publish it. In 1771, I saw the propositions called the ‘_Minutes_.’
  Their author invited me to ‘_review the whole affair_.’ I did so; and
  soon found that I had ‘leaned too much toward Calvinism,’ which, after
  mature consideration, appeared to me exactly to coincide with
  _speculative_ Antinomianism; and the same year I publicly acknowledged
  my error.[305]

  “When I had thus openly confessed that I was involved in the guilt of
  _many of my brethren_, and that I had so leaned towards _speculative_
  as not to have made a proper stand against _practical_ Antinomianism,
  who could have thought that one of my most formidable opponents[306]
  would have attempted to screen his mistakes behind some passages of a
  manuscript sermon which I preached twelve years ago, and of which, by
  some means or other, he has got a copy?

Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.

Wesley's Designated Successor: The Life, Letters, and Literary Labours of the Rev. John William Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, Shropshire

Wesley's Designated Successor: The Life, Letters, and Literary Labours of the Rev. John William Fletcher, Vicar of Madeley, Shropshire

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