Learning about Methodists with da Methodists!

Leigh had expressed interest in seeing some "Methodist" sights while being so close in England, so the minister of Great Horton Methodist Church, Louise, was so kind to take her- and I tagged along! It was very interesting for me to learn the history behind the Methodist denomination. We found ourselves in the small village of Epworth, which is where John and Charles Wesley were born and raised. We went to the rectory, which is where the family grew up because John and Charles father was the vicar of the church there. There we went on a tour and learned all about the entire family. A lot of emphasis about the person that John Wesley became was because of the people who raised him. Apparently his mama was one tough cookie! She was one of 25 kids or something and she ended up having 19 kids of her own (10 survived). 

We realized after our hour and a half long tour that we could have
been wearing these hats for the entire time! Darn!

Our tour guide thought that I was not interested and tired. Truth was I was interested but our guide was a man over the age of 75 and he put his thoughts together slowly. Plus, it took all my energy to try to understand what he was saying. His accent was very hard to understand!

John Wesley would stand here and preach!

Some fun things that I learned about John Wesley:

* he was only 5'2'' tall!

* when he was five he was pulled from his burning house. 

* he lived in America in Georgia for a couple of years, trying to evangelize

* was not the best with relationships...

* he documented events from a poltergeist in the attic of their house.

When John Wesley was told he could not preach anywhere that wasn't his property, he went to his father's grave and preached standing on top of it to a mass of people!

He was baptized here in the church that his father preached at...