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The Methodist New Connexion (MNC) was formed in 1797. Its founder was Alexander Kilham. Kilham became a preacher for Wesley and was ordained in 1792. In 1795 Kilham's wrote a booklet entitled "The Progress of Liberty Among People Called Methodists", in which he made a number of proposals, including: that the consent of members be obtained before individuals were admitted or expelled and class leaders' appointed; that lay preachers should be examined and approved by leaders' and circuit meetings; that any proposed itinerant minister should be approved by the circuit meeting; and that lay delegates should be appointed by circuits to district meetings and by district meetings to Conference. (All of these demands, though opposed by Conference at the time, were eventually adopted.) Kilham was expelled by the Wesleyan Conference in July 1796 and soon a group of like-minded preachers gathered to form 'The New Itinerancy' as the MNC was first known. The MNC was never very large. In 1822 it had 10,856 members in 26 circuits.
The MNC began its missionary endeavours in 1824, and established a mission in Belfast, Ireland, in 1826. In 1905 the MNC churches in Ireland united with the Wesleyan churches to form the Methodist Church in Ireland. The conference of 1836 resolved upon a mission to Canada, and in 1837 Rev. John Addyman became the first MNC minister to be sent out on colonial work. Work in the colonies was affected by a series of Methodist unions. In 1874 the Canadian Mission united with the Wesleyan churches.
The Conference of 1859 appointed the Revs. John Innocent and William Nelthorpe Hall to be the first missionaries to go to China. They arrived in 1860, worked at Shanghai and eventually settled at Tientsin [Tianjin]. In 1866 an outpost was established at Laoling. In 1870 a massacre occurred in Tientsin [Tianjin], and the MNC churches were destroyed. By 1876 another station had been opened at Wutingfu, in Shantung Province. Then a move was made towards the north-east, and in 1884 a station was opened at Tangshan in the neighbourhood of Kaiping, 90 miles from Tientsin [Tianjin]. By 1900 the Chinese stations had a membership of nearly 4000. MNC Stations escaped the Boxer Rising of 1900. After the Rising, there was a new period of progress, and in 1902 a new Station was opened at Yungping, near the Great Wall of China in the north-east.
Missionary work to Australia began in 1862 with the Rev. James Maughan being stationed in Adelaide. A mission was also started in Melbourne. Three years later the Rev. Clement Linley began work in New Zealand. In 1887 the Australian Mission united with the Wesleyan churches.
The Women's Missionary Auxiliary was founded in 1899 and by 1901 eight branches had been formed in the UK with a membership of 403. By 1905 there were 27 branches with a membership of c1,200 and sufficient funds to send a female missionary, Miss Mary L. Moreton, to the Girls' School at Chu Chia, Shantung District, China. In 1907 there were two female missionaries working in the Lao Ling circuit of Shaotung: Miss Kate Cook working in Chu Chia and Miss Annie J Turner, Principal of the Girls' School.
The MNC Missionary Society was managed by a Committee, which consisted of a President, Treasurer and Secretary, with 16 ministers and 16 laymen appointed annually by the Conference. However, in 1907 the MNC merged with the Bible Christians and the United Methodist Free Churches (UMFC) to form the United Methodist Church (UMMS). Just prior to this union the MNC had 4,466 members in China and 11 missionaries serving them.
In 1932 the United Methodist Church joined the Wesleyan Methodists and the Primitive Methodists Church to form the Methodist Church of Great Britain. The Uniting Conference was held on 20 September 1932. The work of the UMMS merged with that of the Wesleyan and Primitive Methodists to form the Methodist Missionary Society (MMS).
Further reading:
Rev. Oliver A. Beckerlegge, 'A Bibliography of the Methodist New Connexion' (Gage Postal Books, 1988).
Rev John Hedley, 'Our Mission in North China: Being a Short Record of Methodist New Connexion Missionary Work' (Geo. Burroughs, 1907).
G. T. Candlin, 'John Innocent: a Story of Mission Work in North China' (United Methodist Publishing House, 1909). |
The Methodist New Connexion (MNC) was formed in 1797. Its founder was Alexander Kilham. Kilham became a preacher for Wesley and was ordained in 1792. In 1795 Kilham's wrote a booklet entitled "The Progress of Liberty Among People Called Methodists", in which he made a number of proposals, including: that the consent of members be obtained before individuals were admitted or expelled and class leaders' appointed; that lay preachers should be examined and approved by leaders' and circuit meetings; that any proposed itiner ... View more |
