Alexander Kilham
Encyclopedia
Alexander Kilham English
Methodist, was born at Epworth, Lincolnshire.
He was admitted by John Wesley
in 1785 into the regular itinerant ministry and became minister of a circuit in Sheffield
. He became the leader and spokesman of the democratic party in the Connection which claimed for the laity the free election of class-leaders and stewards, and equal representation with ministers at Conference. They also contended that the ministry should possess no official authority or pastoral prerogative, but should merely carry into effect the decisions of majorities in the different meetings.
Kilham further advocated the complete separation of the Methodists from the Anglican Church. In the violent controversy that ensued he wrote many pamphlets, often anonymous, and frequently not in the best of taste. For this he was arraigned before the Conference of 1796 and expelled, and he then founded the Methodist New Connexion
(1798, merged since 1907 in the United Methodist Church (Great Britain)
).
He died in 1798, and the success of the church he founded is a tribute to his personality and to the principles for which he strove. Kilham's wife (Hannah Spurr, 1774–1832), whom he married only a few months before his death, became a Quaker, and worked as a missionary in the Gambia
and at Sierra Leone
; she reduced to writing several West Africa
n vernaculars.
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
Methodist, was born at Epworth, Lincolnshire.
He was admitted by John Wesley
John Wesley
John Wesley was a Church of England cleric and Christian theologian. Wesley is largely credited, along with his brother Charles Wesley, as founding the Methodist movement which began when he took to open-air preaching in a similar manner to George Whitefield...
in 1785 into the regular itinerant ministry and became minister of a circuit in Sheffield
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city and metropolitan borough of South Yorkshire, England. Its name derives from the River Sheaf, which runs through the city. Historically a part of the West Riding of Yorkshire, and with some of its southern suburbs annexed from Derbyshire, the city has grown from its largely...
. He became the leader and spokesman of the democratic party in the Connection which claimed for the laity the free election of class-leaders and stewards, and equal representation with ministers at Conference. They also contended that the ministry should possess no official authority or pastoral prerogative, but should merely carry into effect the decisions of majorities in the different meetings.
Kilham further advocated the complete separation of the Methodists from the Anglican Church. In the violent controversy that ensued he wrote many pamphlets, often anonymous, and frequently not in the best of taste. For this he was arraigned before the Conference of 1796 and expelled, and he then founded the Methodist New Connexion
Methodist New Connexion
Methodist New Connexion was a Protestant nonconformist church, also known as the Kilhamite Methodists. It was formed in 1797 by secession from the Wesleyan Methodists, and merged in 1907 with the Bible Christian Church and the United Methodist Free Churches to form the United Methodist...
(1798, merged since 1907 in the United Methodist Church (Great Britain)
United Methodist Church (Great Britain)
There are other bodies that have been called the United Methodist Church----The United Methodist Church in Great Britain was a Protestant denomination that existed in the early twentieth century...
).
He died in 1798, and the success of the church he founded is a tribute to his personality and to the principles for which he strove. Kilham's wife (Hannah Spurr, 1774–1832), whom he married only a few months before his death, became a Quaker, and worked as a missionary in the Gambia
The Gambia
The Republic of The Gambia, commonly referred to as The Gambia, or Gambia , is a country in West Africa. Gambia is the smallest country on mainland Africa, surrounded by Senegal except for a short coastline on the Atlantic Ocean in the west....
and at Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone
Sierra Leone , officially the Republic of Sierra Leone, is a country in West Africa. It is bordered by Guinea to the north and east, Liberia to the southeast, and the Atlantic Ocean to the west and southwest. Sierra Leone covers a total area of and has an estimated population between 5.4 and 6.4...
; she reduced to writing several West Africa
West Africa
West Africa or Western Africa is the westernmost region of the African continent. Geopolitically, the UN definition of Western Africa includes the following 16 countries and an area of approximately 5 million square km:-Flags of West Africa:...
n vernaculars.