John Wesley na Historia ya Umethodisti — Sehemu ya 6: Umethodisti wa Marekani: Asbury, Wahubiri wa Mizunguko na Mkutano wa Krismasi (1784)John Wesley and the History of Methodism — Unit 6: American Methodism: Asbury, the Circuit Riders, and the Christmas Conference (1784)

Mstari MkuuKey Verse

"Tena, watahubirije asipotumwa? Kama ilivyoandikwa, Ni mizuri jinsi gani miguu yao waletao habari njema!" (Warumi 10:15, SUV)"And how shall they preach unless they are sent? As it is written: 'How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the gospel of peace, Who bring glad tidings of good things!'" (Romans 10:15, NKJV)

Malengo ya KujifunzaLearning Objectives

Utakapomaliza kipindi hiki, unapaswa kuweza:When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. Kueleza jinsi Umethodisti ulivyofika kwanza katika makoloni ya Marekani kupitia walei na kisha kupitia wahubiri waliotumwa na John Wesley.1. Describe how Methodism first came to the American colonies through lay people and then through preachers sent by John Wesley.

2. Kueleza kwa nini Vita vya Uhuru vya Marekani vilileta mgogoro kwa mahubiri ya Kimethodisti, sakramenti na kuwekwa wakfu.2. Explain why the American Revolution created a crisis for Methodist preaching, the sacraments and ordination.

3. Kueleza yaliyotokea katika Mkutano wa Krismasi huko Baltimore mwaka 1784 na kile ulichokiunda.3. Describe what happened at the Christmas Conference in Baltimore in 1784 and what it created.

4. Kueleza jinsi mfumo wa mizunguko (circuit system) na wahubiri wa mizunguko (circuit riders) walivyobeba ujumbe wa Kimethodisti kote katika nchi inayokua.4. Explain how the circuit system and the circuit riders carried the Methodist message across a growing country.

5. Kutaja pingamizi zilizotolewa dhidi ya uongozi wa Kimethodisti na mbinu za mwamko, na kutoa jibu la Kiwesley kwa kila moja.5. State the objections raised against Methodist leadership and revival methods, and give the Wesleyan answer to each.

Sauti ya Kozi HiiThe Voice of This Course

Kozi hii imeandikwa kutoka ndani ya mapokeo ya Wesley, kwa wanafunzi walio ndani yake. Ni ya kihafidhina na ya kiinjili. Inaposema "sisi" au "mapokeo yetu," inamaanisha makanisa ya Kimethodisti na ya Wesley-Utakatifu yanayoshikilia kwamba Biblia ni Neno la Mungu, kanuni ya mwisho ya imani na maisha, na yanayofundisha wokovu kwa neema kwa njia ya imani kwa watu wote. Wakristo wengine na wanahistoria wengi wanaona baadhi ya matukio haya kwa njia tofauti. Tunaeleza mitazamo yao kwa haki kisha tunatoa jibu letu. Maandiko yasema, "Jaribuni mambo yote; mkaze lile lililo jema" (1 Wathesalonike 5:21).This course is written from inside the Wesleyan tradition, for students who belong to it. It is conservative and evangelical. When it says "we" or "our tradition," it means the Methodist and Wesleyan-Holiness churches that hold the Bible to be the Word of God, the final rule of faith and life, and that teach salvation by grace through faith for all people. Other Christians and many historians see some of these events differently. We state their views fairly and then give our answer. Scripture says, "Test all things; hold fast what is good" (1 Thessalonians 5:21).

Kwa Nini Kipindi Hiki Ni MuhimuWhy This Unit Matters

Katika vipindi vitano vya kwanza tulimfuata John Wesley na wasaidizi wake huko Uingereza. Katika kipindi hiki tunavuka Atlantiki. Habari ya Umethodisti wa Marekani ina maana kwa wachungaji wa Mexico, Cuba na nchi nyingine nyingi kwa sababu mbili. Kwanza, makanisa yaliyotuma wamisionari kusini na ng'ambo ya bahari yalikuwa hasa makanisa ya Kimethodisti ya Marekani yaliyokua kutokana na matukio ya kipindi hiki. Pili, jinsi Wamethodisti wa Marekani walivyojipanga, wakiwa na wahubiri wasafiri, vikundi vidogo na kanisa lililounganishwa, ni mfano ambao kanisa lolote dogo linaweza kujifunza kutoka kwake leo.In the first five units we followed John Wesley and his helpers in England. In this unit we cross the Atlantic. The story of American Methodism matters for pastors in Mexico, Cuba and many other lands for two reasons. First, the churches that sent missionaries south and across the sea were mainly the American Methodist churches that grew out of the events in this unit. Second, the way American Methodists organized themselves, with travelling preachers, small groups and a connected church, is a pattern that any small church can learn from today.

Umethodisti Unafika MarekaniMethodism Comes to America

Umethodisti haukufika Marekani kwanza kupitia maaskofu au maafisa. Ulifika kupitia waumini wa kawaida waliohamia huko na kudumisha imani yao. Katika miaka ya 1760 walei kadhaa walianza kazi ya Kimethodisti. Robert Strawbridge, mhamiaji kutoka Ireland, alihubiri na kukusanya watu huko Maryland. Huko New York, Philip Embury, pia kutoka Ireland, alianza kuhubiri mwaka 1766, akihimizwa na binamu yake Barbara Heck, aliyewakumbusha Wamethodisti waliomzunguka kwamba hawapaswi kuacha imani yao ipoe. Ofisa wa jeshi la Uingereza, Kapteni Thomas Webb, pia alihubiri kwa matokeo makubwa katika makoloni. Hawa walikuwa walei, na Mungu aliwatumia.Methodism did not come to America first through bishops or officials. It came through ordinary believers who moved there and kept their faith. In the 1760s several lay people began Methodist work. Robert Strawbridge, an Irish immigrant, preached and gathered people in Maryland. In New York, Philip Embury, also from Ireland, began to preach in 1766, urged on by his cousin Barbara Heck, who reminded the Methodists around her that they must not let their faith grow cold. A British army officer, Captain Thomas Webb, also preached with great effect in the colonies. These were laypeople, and God used them.

Jumuiya zilizoundwa zilimwomba Wesley msaada. Mwaka 1769 aliwatuma Richard Boardman na Joseph Pilmore Marekani. Mwaka 1771 Francis Asbury na Richard Wright walifuata. Wesley aliwapa wahubiri wake kusudi lililo wazi: walipaswa kuwaleta watu kwa Kristo na kuwafanya wanafunzi, si kujenga himaya.The societies that formed asked Wesley for help. In 1769 he sent Richard Boardman and Joseph Pilmore to America. In 1771 Francis Asbury and Richard Wright followed. Wesley gave his preachers a clear purpose: they were to win people to Christ and to form them into disciples, not to build an empire.

Francis AsburyFrancis Asbury

Francis Asbury alizaliwa Uingereza mwaka 1745 katika familia ya wafanyakazi. Aliongoka na kuwa mhubiri wa Kimethodisti akiwa kijana. Wesley alipoomba mwaka 1771 wajitolea kwa ajili ya Marekani, Asbury alijitoa. Alifika Philadelphia katika vuli ya mwaka huo. Hakuwahi kuoa, na alitoa maisha yake kwa kusafiri, kuhubiri na kupanga. Alifariki mwaka 1816 huko Virginia, akiwa bado barabarani.Francis Asbury was born in England in 1745 into a working family. He was converted and became a Methodist preacher while he was young. When Wesley asked in 1771 for volunteers for America, Asbury offered himself. He arrived in Philadelphia in the autumn of that year. He never married, and he gave his life to travelling, preaching and organizing. He died in 1816 in Virginia, still on the road.

Asbury aliamini kwamba Umethodisti haungestawi kama wahubiri wangekaa mijini. Aliwasihi wahubiri wake waende kwenye makazi yaliyotawanyika, ambapo watu hawakuwa na kanisa. Journal yake (Shajara) ni chanzo cha msingi kutoka kwa mkono wake na inaonyesha nidhamu yake, upendo wake kwa waliopotea, na uchovu wake wa wazi. Vita vya Uhuru vilipoanza, karibu wahubiri wote wa Kiingereza walirudi nyumbani. Asbury alichagua kubaki, ingawa uhusiano wake na Uingereza ulifanya nafasi yake kuwa ngumu. Wakati mwingine ilimbidi kupunguza safari zake wakati wa vita. Uamuzi wake wa kubaki ulimpatia imani ya Wamethodisti wa Marekani. Wesley, kwa upande wake, alikuwa amepinga hadharani uhuru wa Marekani, na hili lilifanya uaminifu wa wahubiri wake huko Marekani kuwa jambo nyeti.Asbury believed that Methodism would not thrive if preachers sat in the cities. He pressed his preachers to go out to the scattered settlements, where people had no church. His own Journal is a primary source from his hand and shows his discipline, his love for the lost, and his frank weariness. When the Revolutionary War began, almost all the English preachers returned home. Asbury chose to remain, even though his connection to England made his position difficult. He sometimes had to limit his travel during the war. His decision to stay earned him the trust of American Methodists. Wesley, for his part, had publicly opposed American independence, and this made the loyalty of his preachers in America a sensitive matter.

Mgogoro wa Miaka ya VitaThe Crisis of the War Years

Vita vilileta tatizo kubwa. Kabla ya uhuru, Wamethodisti wa Marekani walikuwa jumuiya ndani ya Kanisa la Uingereza. Hawakuwa kanisa tofauti. Walipokea ubatizo na Meza ya Bwana kutoka kwa makasisi wa Kianglikana walipoweza. Vita vilipokuja, makasisi wengi wa Kianglikana waliondoka, na Wamethodisti katika maeneo mengi hawakuwa na mhudumu aliyeweza kutoa sakramenti. Watu walikuwa wanaongoka, lakini watoto wao hawakuweza kubatizwa na mhudumu aliyewekwa wakfu ipasavyo, na Meza ya Bwana ilipatikana mara chache.The war brought a serious problem. Before independence, American Methodists were societies within the Church of England. They were not a separate church. They received baptism and the Lord's Supper from Anglican clergy when they could. When the war came, many Anglican clergy left, and the Methodists in many places had no minister who could administer the sacraments. People were being converted, but their children could not be baptized by a properly ordained minister, and the Lord's Supper was seldom available.

Shinikizo hili liliwagawa wahubiri. Baadhi ya wale wa Kusini walitaka kutoa sakramenti wenyewe. Wengine, pamoja na Asbury, walitaka kusubiri na kudumisha uaminifu kwa Wesley na kwa utaratibu wa Kianglikana aliouthamini. Kwa muda umoja wa vuguvugu ulikuwa hatarini. Swali hilo halikuwa dogo. Mapokeo yetu yanafundisha kwamba sakramenti ni njia halisi za neema, na kanisa lisiloweza kuziadhimisha linakosa kitu ambacho Mungu amekitoa kwa afya ya watu wake.This pressure divided the preachers. Some in the South wanted to administer the sacraments themselves. Others, with Asbury, wanted to wait and keep faith with Wesley and with the Anglican order he valued. For a time the unity of the movement was in danger. The question was not trivial. Our tradition teaches that the sacraments are real means of grace, and a church that cannot celebrate them lacks something God has given for the health of His people.

Jibu la Wesley Mwaka 1784Wesley's Answer in 1784

Vita vilipoisha, jambo hilo lilihitaji kutatuliwa. Wesley aliomba msaada kutoka Kanisa la Uingereza kwa makasisi waliowekwa wakfu kwa ajili ya Marekani, na haukutolewa. Mwaka 1784 Wesley alichukua hatua. Aliwaweka wakfu Richard Whatcoat na Thomas Vasey kuwa wazee kwa ajili ya kazi huko Marekani. Pia alimtenga Thomas Coke, kasisi wa Kianglikana aliyewekwa wakfu ambaye tayari alikuwa mmoja wa wasaidizi wake wa karibu zaidi, kuwa msimamizi (superintendent) wa kusimamia kazi pamoja na Asbury. Aliwatuma pamoja na kitabu cha ibada kilichorekebishwa, kiitwacho The Sunday Service of the Methodists in North America (Ibada ya Jumapili ya Wamethodisti wa Amerika Kaskazini), kilichotegemea Book of Common Prayer, na seti fupi ya Articles of Religion (Vifungu vya Imani), vilivyopunguzwa kutoka Vifungu thelathini na tisa vya Kanisa la Uingereza.After the war ended, the matter had to be settled. Wesley sought help from the Church of England for ordained clergy for America, and it was not given. In 1784 Wesley acted. He ordained Richard Whatcoat and Thomas Vasey as elders for the work in America. He also set apart Thomas Coke, an ordained Anglican clergyman who was already one of his closest helpers, as a superintendent to oversee the work with Asbury. He sent them with a revised service book, called The Sunday Service of the Methodists in North America, based on the Book of Common Prayer, and with a shorter set of Articles of Religion, reduced from the Thirty-nine Articles of the Church of England.

PingamiziThe objection

Tendo hili lilibishaniwa wakati huo na bado linajadiliwa leo. Wesley alikuwa kasisi wa Kanisa la Uingereza, na katika kanisa hilo ni maaskofu tu waliowaweka wakfu wengine. Waanglikana wengi walisema hakuwa na haki ya kuweka wakfu. Ndugu yake mwenyewe Charles alihuzunika sana, kwa sababu alitaka Umethodisti ubaki ndani ya Kanisa la Uingereza. Baadhi ya wanahistoria wanasema tendo hilo kwa kweli lilikuwa mwanzo wa kanisa tofauti, bila kujali Wesley alichosema, ilhali wengine wanasisitiza kwamba Wesley mwenyewe aliamini kwamba haondoki Kanisa la Uingereza.This act was disputed then and is still debated today. Wesley was a priest of the Church of England, and in that church only bishops ordained. Many Anglicans said he had no right to ordain. His own brother Charles was deeply grieved, because he wanted Methodism to stay within the Church of England. Some historians say the act was in effect the beginning of a separate church, whatever Wesley said, while others stress that Wesley himself believed he was not leaving the Church of England.

Jibu letuOur answer

Wesley alitenda kwa msimamo aliokuwa nao kwa miaka mingi. Aliposoma Agano Jipya, alishawishika kwamba vyeo vya mzee na msimamizi, ambavyo Biblia zetu za Kiingereza wakati mwingine huita "bishop" (askofu), vilikuwa huduma moja katika kanisa la kwanza. Katika Tito 1:5-7, Paulo anamwambia Tito kuweka wazee kisha anazungumza juu ya watu hao hao kama wasimamizi. Katika Matendo 14:23, Paulo na Barnaba waliweka wazee katika kila kanisa. Hivyo Wesley aliamini kwamba mzee, aliyeitwa ipasavyo, anaweza kuweka wakfu kwa nchi ambayo kanisa halina mtu mwingine wa kufanya hivyo. Pia alihoji kutokana na dharura. Maelfu ya watu huko Marekani hawakuwa na sakramenti, na hakukuwa na njia nyingine ya kuzitoa. Hatusemi kwamba kila undani wa mpango huo ulikuwa kamilifu. Tunasema kwamba Wesley alitenda kutokana na dhamiri na Maandiko, kwa ajili ya roho za watu, na kwamba Bwana alilibariki kanisa lililofuata.Wesley acted from a conviction he had held for years. Reading the New Testament, he was persuaded that the offices of elder and overseer, which our English Bibles sometimes call "bishop," belonged to the same ministry in the early church. In Titus 1:5-7, Paul tells Titus to appoint elders and then speaks of the same men as overseers. In Acts 14:23, Paul and Barnabas appointed elders in every church. So Wesley believed that an elder, rightly called, could ordain for a land where the church had no one else to do it. He also argued from necessity. Thousands of people in America were without the sacraments, and there was no other way to supply them. We do not say that every detail of the arrangement was perfect. We say that Wesley acted from conscience and from Scripture, for the sake of souls, and that the Lord blessed the church that followed.

Mkutano wa Krismasi wa 1784The Christmas Conference of 1784

Coke, Whatcoat na Vasey walifika Marekani katika vuli ya 1784. Asbury na Coke waliwaita wahubiri pamoja. Walikutana Baltimore, kuanzia tarehe 24 Desemba 1784, katika kanisa dogo kwenye Lovely Lane. Mkutano huo unajulikana kama Mkutano wa Krismasi (Christmas Conference). Uliendelea hadi mwanzoni mwa Januari 1785.Coke, Whatcoat and Vasey arrived in America in the autumn of 1784. Asbury and Coke called the preachers together. They met in Baltimore, beginning on December 24, 1784, in a chapel on Lovely Lane. The meeting is known as the Christmas Conference. It ran into early January 1785.

Katika mkutano huu Wamethodisti wa Marekani walijipanga rasmi kuwa kanisa, Methodist Episcopal Church. Neno "Episcopal" hapa linamaanisha kwamba kanisa liliongozwa na wasimamizi, ambao punde walichukua cheo cha askofu. Wesley hakupenda cheo hicho, lakini kilianza kutumika.At this conference the Methodists in America formally organized themselves as a church, the Methodist Episcopal Church. The word "Episcopal" here means that the church was led by superintendents, who soon took the title of bishop. Wesley disliked the title, but it came into use.

Mkutano ulifanya mambo kadhaa muhimu.The conference did several important things.

• Ulikubali Coke na Asbury kuwa wasimamizi wakuu. Asbury alisisitiza kwamba hatatumikia kwa sababu tu Wesley alimteua. Alitaka wahubiri wa Marekani wamchague. Walifanya hivyo. Kisha aliwekwa wakfu kwa siku kadhaa, kwanza kama shemasi, kisha kama mzee, kisha kama msimamizi. Hili linaonyesha sifa ya kanisa la Marekani: viongozi walichaguliwa kwa idhini ya wahubiri.• It accepted Coke and Asbury as general superintendents. Asbury insisted that he would not serve merely because Wesley appointed him. He wished the American preachers to elect him. They did. He was then ordained over several days, first as deacon, then as elder, then as superintendent. This shows a feature of the American church: leaders were chosen with the consent of the preachers.

• Ulipokea Ibada ya Jumapili (Sunday Service) na Vifungu vya Imani kama kiwango cha ibada na cha mafundisho cha kanisa. Vifungu vya Imani (Articles of Religion) bado ni waraka wa msingi kwa madhehebu mengi ya Wesley leo.• It received the Sunday Service and the Articles of Religion as the church's worship and doctrinal standard. The Articles of Religion remain a core document for many Wesleyan bodies today.

• Ulipitisha kanuni kwa wahubiri na kwa watu, zilizokuwa Discipline (Mwongozo wa Nidhamu).• It adopted rules for the preachers and the people, which became the Discipline.

• Ulizungumza dhidi ya utumwa. Mkutano ulipitisha kanuni kali zinazowataka Wamethodisti kuwaachilia huru wale walioshikilia utumwani. Kanuni hizo zilikutana na upinzani mkubwa hata zikasimamishwa ndani ya miezi michache. Hii ni sehemu ya kusikitisha ya habari yetu. Kanisa lilijua lililo sawa na halikulishikilia. Kipindi cha 8 kinarudi kwenye somo hili.• It spoke against slavery. The conference adopted strong rules requiring Methodists to free those they held in bondage. Those rules met such resistance that they were suspended within a few months. This is a sad part of our story. The church knew what was right and did not hold to it. Unit 8 returns to this subject.

Wahubiri wa Mizunguko (Circuit Riders)The Circuit Riders

Kiini cha ukuaji wa Umethodisti wa Marekani kilikuwa mfumo wa mizunguko. Mzunguko (circuit) ulikuwa kundi la mahali pa kuhubiri, mara nyingi mbali kwa maili nyingi. Mhubiri msafiri alizunguka mzunguko kwa farasi, akihubiri karibu kila siku, na kurudi kila mahali kila baada ya wiki chache. Wahubiri walipangiwa mzunguko mpya mara kwa mara, ili kwamba hakuna mahali palipomtegemea mtu mmoja. Kati ya ziara zake, wahubiri wa mahali, wahimizaji (exhorters), viongozi wa madarasa na mawakili (stewards), wote walei, waliendeleza kazi. Kila aliyeongoka aliunganishwa na darasa, kikundi kidogo kilichokutana kila wiki kuomba na kutunzana. Hii ilikuwa njia ya Wesley kutoka Kipindi cha 4, sasa ikinyooshwa katika bara zima.The heart of American Methodist growth was the circuit system. A circuit was a group of preaching places, often many miles apart. A travelling preacher rode a circuit on horseback, preaching almost daily, and returned to each place every few weeks. The preachers were appointed to a new circuit regularly, so that no place depended on one man. Between his visits, local preachers, exhorters, class leaders and stewards, all lay people, kept the work going. Every convert was joined to a class, a small group that met weekly to pray and to watch over one another. This was Wesley's method from Unit 4, now stretched across a continent.

Wahubiri wa mizunguko mara nyingi walikuwa vijana, wasio na wake, waliolipwa kidogo, waliokabili mito, hali ya hewa ya baridi, magonjwa na hatari. Wengi walikufa mapema. Peter Cartwright, mmoja wa wanaojulikana zaidi kati yao mwanzoni mwa karne ya kumi na tisa, aliandika juu ya maisha hayo katika kitabu chake cha wasifu. Mahubiri yao yalikuwa rahisi na ya moja kwa moja. Yaliwaita watu wote kutubu, yalifundisha kwamba Kristo alikufa kwa ajili ya wote, na yaliahidi kwamba kila mwamini anaweza kujua kwamba amesamehewa. Ujumbe huu wa neema ya bure kwa wote ulifaa nchi ya watu wa kawaida, wengi wao wakiwa na elimu kidogo na bila kanisa.The circuit riders were often young, single men, poorly paid, who faced rivers, winter weather, sickness and danger. Many died early. Peter Cartwright, one of the best known of them in the early nineteenth century, wrote about the life in his autobiography. Their preaching was plain and direct. It called all people to repent, taught that Christ died for all, and promised that every believer may know that he is forgiven. This message of free grace for all fitted a land of ordinary people, many of whom had little schooling and no church.

Pamoja na mizunguko ulikuja mkutano wa kambi (camp meeting). Katika mkusanyiko mkubwa huko Cane Ridge, Kentucky, mwaka 1801, ulioongozwa hasa na Wapresbiteri lakini ukijumuisha Wamethodisti na Wabaptisti, maelfu walikuja kusikia mahubiri kwa siku kadhaa. Wamethodisti waliichukua kambi kama chombo cha mwamko. Ndani ya miongo michache, Methodist Episcopal Church ilikuwa mojawapo ya makanisa makubwa zaidi katika taifa jipya.Alongside the circuits came the camp meeting. At the great gathering at Cane Ridge, Kentucky, in 1801, led mainly by Presbyterians but joined by Methodists and Baptists, thousands came to hear preaching over several days. Methodists took up the camp meeting as an instrument of revival. Within a few decades the Methodist Episcopal Church had become one of the largest churches in the new nation.

Njia Nyingine ya Kueleza UkuajiAnother Way of Explaining the Growth

Wanahistoria hutoa maelezo kadhaa kwa kasi ya ukuaji wa Kimethodisti. Wengine wanasisitiza sababu za kijamii: idadi ya watu iliyohamahama, ukosefu wa makanisa yaliyoanzishwa mipakani, na mtindo wa uongozi uliowapa watu wa kawaida sauti. Maelezo haya yana manufaa, na mfumo wa mizunguko hakika ulifaa nchi hiyo. Lakini mapokeo yetu yanafundisha kwamba njia za kibinadamu si hadithi nzima. Bwana alitumia njia hizi, kama alivyotumia barabara za Milki ya Roma kubeba injili katika karne ya kwanza. Tunashikilia kwamba maisha yalibadilika kwa mahubiri ya toba na imani, na kwa neema ya Mungu iliyomfikia kila mtu. Wamethodisti hawakufanikiwa kwa sababu walikuwa na ujanja. Wengi waliteseka na kufa kwa sababu waliamini walichohubiri.Historians offer several explanations for the speed of Methodist growth. Some stress social causes: a mobile population, a lack of established churches on the frontier, and a style of leadership that gave a voice to ordinary people. These explanations are useful, and the circuit system certainly suited the land. But our tradition teaches that human means are not the whole story. The Lord used these means, as He used the roads of the Roman Empire to carry the gospel in the first century. We hold that lives were changed by the preaching of repentance and faith, and by the grace of God that reaches every person. The Methodists did not succeed because they were clever. Many suffered and died because they believed what they preached.

Pingamizi kwa Njia za KimethodistiObjections to Methodist Ways

Pingamizi la 1: Maaskofu na wahubiri wanaopangiwa si wa kibiblia. Wabaptisti na Wakongregationali wamefundisha kwamba kila kanisa la mahali linapaswa kujitawala na kuita mchungaji wake, na kwamba mfumo wa maaskofu wanaotuma wahubiri hauna kibali cha Agano Jipya.Objection 1: Bishops and appointed preachers are not biblical. Baptists and Congregationalists have taught that each local church should govern itself and call its own pastor, and that a system of bishops sending preachers has no New Testament warrant.

Jibu letu. Agano Jipya halitoi mfano mmoja mgumu wa utawala wa kanisa. Linaonyesha mitume wakisimamia makanisa mengi, Tito akiweka wazee, na Paulo akiandikia makanisa kama kundi. Muungano wa Kimethodisti unalingana na picha hiyo ya makanisa yanayoshiriki huduma na kutunzana. Tunaheshimu makanisa ya kongregationali na hatuyalaumu. Lakini tunashikilia kwamba kanisa lililounganishwa, lenye usimamizi unaowajibika, linatumikia injili vizuri, hasa pale makutaniko mengi ni madogo na mapya. Maaskofu wetu tangu mwanzo walikuwa watumishi na wasafiri, si mabwana. Petro aliandika juu ya kuchunga "wala si kama mkiwatawala wale mlioachiwa, bali kuwa vielelezo kwa lile kundi" (1 Petro 5:3).Our answer. The New Testament does not give one rigid pattern of church government. It shows apostles overseeing many churches, Titus appointing elders, and Paul writing to churches as a group. Methodist connection fits that picture of churches who share a ministry and watch over each other. We respect congregational churches and do not condemn them. But we hold that a connected church, with accountable oversight, serves the gospel well, especially where many congregations are small and new. Our bishops were from the start servants and travellers, not lords. Peter wrote of shepherding "nor as being lords over those entrusted to you" (1 Peter 5:3).

Pingamizi la 2: Mikutano ya mwamko inaendeshwa na hisia na kupita kiasi. Wakosoaji walisema kwamba mikutano ya kambi ilizalisha kulia, kupiga kelele na athari za ajabu za mwili, na kwamba hizi zilikuwa msisimko wa kibinadamu.Objection 2: Revival meetings are driven by emotion and excess. Critics said that the camp meetings produced weeping, shouting and strange bodily effects, and that these were human excitement.

Jibu letu. Tunakubali kwamba baadhi ya makosa ya kupita kiasi yalitokea, kama yalivyotokea katika kila mwamko. Wesley mwenyewe alisisitiza kwamba kila uzoefu upimwe kwa Maandiko na kwa tunda lake, maisha yaliyobadilika na upendo unaokua kwa Mungu na jirani. Hisia si uthibitisho wa neema, lakini kukosa hisia yoyote si uthibitisho wa usalama. Kipimo ni tunda la Roho katika Wagalatia 5:22-23.Our answer. We admit that some excesses occurred, as they have in every revival. Wesley himself insisted that every experience be tested by Scripture and by its fruit, a changed life and a growing love for God and neighbor. A feeling is not proof of grace, but the lack of any feeling is not proof of safety. The test is the fruit of the Spirit in Galatians 5:22-23.

Matumizi ya KichungajiPastoral Application

Mchungaji katika eneo la vijijini anaongoza makutaniko manne madogo yaliyo mbali kati yao. Amechoka, na anahisi kwamba hakuna hata moja linalopata utunzaji wa kutosha. Makundi mawili hukutana tu anapoweza kufika.A pastor in a rural area leads four small congregations that are far from each other. He is tired, and he feels that none of them receives enough care. Two of the groups meet only when he can arrive.

Mfano wa Kimethodisti unampa msaada. Kwanza, hapaswi kubeba kazi peke yake. Anaweza kuchagua waumini waaminifu katika kila mahali na kuwafunza kuwa viongozi wa madarasa na wahubiri walei, ili kanisa lisisimame akiwa mbali. Pili, anapaswa kuweka mdundo wa kawaida, ili kila mahali pajue atakapokuja. Tatu, anapaswa kuwaweka watu katika vikundi vidogo kwa sala na kutunzana kati ya ziara zake. Nne, anapaswa kuweka Meza ya Bwana na ubatizo katikati ya ziara zake, kwa kuwa Wamethodisti wa kwanza waliteseka hivi vilipokosekana. Mwishowe, anapaswa kukumbuka kwamba Bwana hutuma watenda kazi: "Basi ombeni Bwana wa mavuno, apeleke watenda kazi katika mavuno yake" (Mathayo 9:38).The Methodist pattern gives him help. First, he should not carry the work alone. He can choose faithful believers in each place and train them as class leaders and lay preachers, so that the church does not stop when he is away. Second, he should set a regular rhythm, so that each place knows when he will come. Third, he should keep the people in small groups for prayer and mutual care between his visits. Fourth, he should keep the Lord's Supper and baptism at the center of his visits, since the early Methodists suffered when these were missing. Finally, he should remember that the Lord sends laborers: "Therefore pray the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into His harvest" (Matthew 9:38).

MuhtasariSummary

Umethodisti ulifika Marekani katika miaka ya 1760 kupitia walei kama Robert Strawbridge, Philip Embury na Barbara Heck, kisha kupitia wahubiri waliotumwa na Wesley, akiwemo Francis Asbury, aliyefika mwaka 1771 na kubaki katika kipindi chote cha Vita vya Uhuru. Vita viliziacha jumuiya za Kimethodisti bila wahudumu waliowekwa wakfu kwa sakramenti. Mwaka 1784 Wesley aliwaweka wakfu wazee na kumtenga Thomas Coke kuwa msimamizi. Pia alituma kitabu cha ibada kilichorekebishwa na Vifungu vya Imani. Katika Mkutano wa Krismasi huko Baltimore, kuanzia tarehe 24 Desemba 1784, Methodist Episcopal Church ilipangwa, Asbury akichaguliwa na kuwekwa wakfu pamoja na Coke. Mkutano pia ulipitisha kanuni kali dhidi ya utumwa ambazo zilisimamishwa punde. Wahubiri wa mizunguko, mikutano ya madarasa na mikutano ya kambi vilibeba ujumbe katika nchi nzima. Wakosoaji walipinga kuwekwa wakfu kwa Wesley, maaskofu na makosa ya kupita kiasi ya mwamko. Mapokeo yetu yanajibu kutokana na Maandiko, dharura na tunda la maisha yaliyobadilika, na kumpa Mungu utukufu.Methodism came to America in the 1760s through lay people such as Robert Strawbridge, Philip Embury and Barbara Heck, and then through preachers sent by Wesley, including Francis Asbury, who arrived in 1771 and remained through the Revolution. The war left the Methodist societies without ordained ministers for the sacraments. In 1784 Wesley ordained elders and set apart Thomas Coke as superintendent. He also sent a revised service book and Articles of Religion. At the Christmas Conference in Baltimore, beginning on December 24, 1784, the Methodist Episcopal Church was organized, with Asbury elected and ordained alongside Coke. The conference also adopted strong rules against slavery that were soon suspended. The circuit riders, class meetings and camp meetings carried the message across the country. Critics objected to Wesley's ordinations, to bishops and to revival excesses. Our tradition answers from Scripture, necessity and the fruit of changed lives, and gives the glory to God.

Usomaji ZaidiFurther Reading

• Francis Asbury, Journal (Shajara), chanzo cha msingi.• Francis Asbury, Journal, a primary source.

• John Wesley, Journal (Shajara), kwa maelezo yake mwenyewe ya vuguvugu.• John Wesley, Journal, for his own account of the movement.

• The Articles of Religion of the Methodist Episcopal Church (Vifungu vya Imani vya Methodist Episcopal Church) (1784), chanzo cha msingi.• The Articles of Religion of the Methodist Episcopal Church (1784), a primary source.

• John Wesley, Sermons (Mahubiri), kwa mafundisho yaliyohubiriwa na wahubiri wa mizunguko.• John Wesley, Sermons, for the doctrine the circuit riders preached.

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