Volume 7 (2021): Issue 2 (December 2021)

This paper explores the interaction between the Methodist Church in Kenya (MCK) and the neo-Pentecostal churches in the Nyambene Synod, Kenya, together with the influence of this interaction on the religious landscape. It examines changes in denominational affiliations affecting the Methodist Church, where a substantial number of (particularly young) members have moved to Pentecostal churches and movements in the region. This identifies factors affecting religious affiliation in the Nyambene Synod and the impact that changing affiliation has on the Methodist Church. Through qualitative empirical research, the study identifies three main factors that increasingly influence movements of Christians between churches: the contemporary consumer culture that emphasises personal choice, the understanding of ecclesial identity, and the relevance of the church to contemporary (Kenyan) society. The research challenges the MCK to reassess its offer within the contemporary religious marketplace, not by imitating Pentecostal churches, but by rediscovering its Wesleyan social holiness heritage.

A comparative study of William Wadé Harris, 1865–1929, and Apolo Kivebulaya, 1865–1932. The Liberian Harris’s short evangelistic tour of the Ivory Coast and western Gold Coast, 1913–1915, laid the foundations of contemporary Methodism, Catholicism, and the independent Harrist Church in Côte d’Ivoire and Church of the Twelve Apostles and others in Ghana. The Ugandan Anglican priest Kivebulaya ministered in the kingdom of Toro in western Uganda, 1895–1915, and in northeast Congo, 1915–1933, and is acclaimed as the founder of the Anglican Church in the Congo.

This article is the fuller version of the 2021 ‘Feanley Hartley Lecture’ that was given on 17 May. This paper is drawn from more current research and a reappraisal of my earliest post-doctoral scholarship, dating back twenty years, in order to assess the theological challenge of systemic racism and the socio-cultural, economic and political challenge of ‘Whiteness’. Utilising the scholarship of Willie James Jennings’ After Whiteness and my 2003 book Nobodies to Somebodies, I seek to reflect on the extent to which the contemporary and historic phenomenon that is the Methodist Church of Great Britain has been enshrined in and defined by ‘Whiteness’.

This study compares the findings of two population surveys of Methodist ministers (presbyters) serving in Great Britain in 1997 and 2008. The findings identified nine areas of change: the quality of Methodist worship is improving; Methodist worship is becoming less traditional and less distinctively Wesleyan; communion is becoming less prioritised; ministers are learning to implement a better work-life balance; the work-related psychological wellbeing of minsters is improving; there is an increase in conservative religious beliefs; expectations on the practices and values of members is being relaxed; homosexual practice is becoming more acceptable; and welcome for Methodist-Anglican unity is receding.

Drawing on the International Methodist – Catholic report on The Call to Holiness, this article identifies holiness as both a divine attribute and as a Christian imperative, inextricably linked with the unity of Christians and of humanity. For humanity to be in the image and likeness of this holy God implies a participation in God’s holiness. Because human life is inescapably social, it implies that this holiness must be expressed in social interaction. For the life of the Christian Church to reflect the holiness of God requires a commitment to unity and actions that echo that commitment. This paper traces the biblical basis of the Judaeo-Christian belief in the holiness of God. It goes on to examine the obstacles and opportunities for Christian unity, particularly between the churches of the Wesleyan tradition and the Church of Rome.

This piece considers the Emmaus Road encounter with Jesus, the arrival at Emmaus and Jesus’ sudden, unexpected disappearance from their midst. I consider various mysteries surrounding the gospels’ presentation of Jesus and his words and actions. I also consider the implications of the recognition of Jesus in the breaking of bread and how Christians today often experience similar brief glimpses of Jesus illuminating our path, then leaving us, encouraging us to make our own free decisions in trust over our future discipleship.

This distinctive theological perspective of Charles Wesley (compared with that of his brother, John) is found in his many collections of hymns. In these hymns, words such as ‘renewal‘, ‘restoration,’ and ‘recovery’ are pivotal in describing the effect that God’s work in Christ has on the life of humanity. This language is reinforced by the multiple images (most of them biblical) that Charles Wesley employs in his poetry. The result is an emphasis on salvation as the restoration of God’s perfect kingdom of love, peace, compassion, and justice.