Samuel Wesley

Biography

Samuel Wesley was born on December 17, 1662, in Winterborne Whitechurch, Dorset, England, into a family with strong Nonconformist beliefs. His father, John Wesley the elder, was a Nonconformist minister who lost his position after the Act of Uniformity in 1662. Despite his background, Samuel Wesley chose to align himself with the Church of England, a decision that defined his adult life and sometimes led to disagreements with those around him. He attended Exeter College, Oxford, and later Corpus Christi College, Oxford, receiving an education that prepared him for a career in the established church and in writing.

After his ordination, Wesley was appointed to the position in Epworth, Lincolnshire, in 1697, where he served until his death in 1735. His time at Epworth was challenging due to financial struggles, occasional conflicts with parishioners, and personal hardships. He was briefly jailed for debt in 1705, causing distress to his large family. In 1709, the rectory at Epworth burned down under suspicious circumstances, nearly costing the life of his young son John, who was saved from the fire at the last minute. This incident later became significant for John Wesley himself.

In 1688, Wesley married Susanna Annesley, daughter of the renowned Nonconformist minister Samuel Annesley. Susanna was a strong intellectual and spiritual influence, playing a key role in the education and religious upbringing of their many children. They had nineteen children, with ten surviving to adulthood. Among them were John Wesley and Charles Wesley, founders of the Methodist movement, a major development in Protestant Christianity.

As a writer, Samuel Wesley created a significant amount of work in both prose and poetry. His poetic works included a life of Christ in verse, "Maggots: or, Poems on Several Subjects, Never Before Handled," published in 1685, and various religious and occasional poems. He also wrote scholarly prose, including a detailed commentary on the Book of Job, which occupied much of his later years and was published after his death. He corresponded with many learned contemporaries and remained actively engaged with theological and literary matters throughout his life.

Samuel Wesley died on April 25, 1735, at Epworth, where he spent most of his life. Though he gained modest recognition in his lifetime as a clergyman and writer, he is largely remembered for being the father of John and Charles Wesley and for the environment he and Susanna created, which nurtured the seriousness and discipline that influenced the founders of Methodism.