1755 JOHN & CHARLES WESLEY. First Edition of a Public Dispute Over Anglican Church & Education for Ministers.

Very rare first edition of an important public controversial pamphlet between John and Charles Wesley. Last offered at auction at Sotheby's, 1983.  The early 1750s were a period of growing tension, at times public, between John and Charles Wesley. A key point of divergence concerned the use of lay preachers. While open to this in principle, Charles was convinced that John was encouraging far too many who had neither the gifts nor the grace to take up the calling. For more on this dimension of the tensions, see Richard P. Heitzenrater, “Purging the Preachers: The Wesleys and Quality Control,” in Charles Wesley: Life, Literature & Legacy, edited by Kenneth Newport & Ted Campbell (Peterborough: Epworth, 2007), 486–514. Even if they were persons of deep spiritual character and clear gifts for preaching, there was another dimension to the challenge of the lay preachers—many of them chafed at the restriction from administering the sacraments. When one of their assistants had sufficie