Wesley Corpus

The effects of my last journey, [The Diary for May 1733 says, 'Journey to Epworth 1.0.6.' He spent Sunday with his friend Clayton in Manchester, and then went on to Epworth.] I believe, will make me more cautious of staying any time from Oxford for the future; at least, till I have no pupils to take care of, which probably will be within a year or two. One of my young gentlemen told me at my return that he was more and more afraid of singularity; another, that he had read an excellent piece of Mr. Locke's;[ 2 John Locke (1632-1704) His nephew, Lord Chancellor King, had a decisive influence on Wesley's ecclesiastical views (see letter of Dec. 30, 1745, p. 54). The piece referred to is that on' Authority '(Essay, folio ed. p. 341): ‘The wrong measure or probability which keeps in ignorance or error more people than all the other together is the giving up our assent to the common received opinions, either. of our friends or party, neighborhood or country.’] which had convinced him of the mischief of regarding authority. Both of them agreed that the observing of Wednesday as a fast was an unnecessary singularity; the Catholic Church (that is, the majority of it) having long since repealed by contrary custom the injunction she formerly gave concerning it. [Robert Nelson, the Nonjuror (1656-1715), whose Festivals and Fasts was much commended in the Holy Club, says of the 'ancient Christians': ' Their weekly fasts were kept on Wednesdays and Fridays, because on the one our Lord was betrayed and on the other crucified. These fasts were called their stations, from the military word of keeping their guard, as Tertullian observes.' See letter of Jan. 13, 1735.] A third, who could not yield to this argument, has been convinced by a fever and Dr. Frewin. [Richard Frewin (1681-1761), of Christ Church, physician. and Camden Professor of Ancient History, 1727, See letter of Jan. 14, 1734.] Our seven-and-twenty communicants at St. Mary's were on Monday shrunk to five; and the day before, the last of Mr. Clayton's pupils who continued with us informed me that he did not design to meet us any more.