The Heart Experience: A Study of Poetry and Piety in Methodist Hymnody in the Eighteenth Century in Britain

Abstract

This study engages in an exploration of the poetics of Methodist hymnody of the eighteenth century in Britain focusing on Charles Wesley, William Williams and Ann Griffiths. Throughout, the reference point is that of the heart experience which shapes the hymns both in terms of poetic expression and theological belief. Methodism was – and is – above all, an experiential faith, a faith of not only knowing but also feeling God and it is in this confluence of knowledge and emotion that the hymnists of the eighteenth century gave voice to what was for all of them a spiritual pilgrimage. It is a confluence which inspired and informed the hymns, and which is brought to bear on the examination of what John Wesley calls the ‘Spirit’ of poetry and piety at the core of this study. The transforming power of Methodism on British society is universally accepted. John Wesley’s preaching, ministry and organisational abilities were key, but as much as hearing the spoken word played a major role in evangelisation so, too, did the sung hymns of Charles Wesley and others like him. Their poetic expressions of spirituality served to inspire, to encourage, to teach but, most of all, to bring people together in shared worship of their God. The hymns were both a personal articulation of Christian faith and the spiritual journey and an inclusive means of expression for all believers. Charles Wesley, a founder of Methodism along with his brother, John, gave to the movement an enduring channel of evangelism, testimony and testament to the power and love of God through the creative output of his hymns. They emerge out of the context of a spirituality that was focused and devotional; the poetry in his hymns became a means to express praise and reverence to God, and the communication of his faith and religious experience was underscored, in every instance, by his linguistic, thematic and stylistic choices. Charles Wesley was at the forefront of hymnody as it manifested in eighteenth- century Britain although certain figures, namely William Williams and, at the end of the century, Ann Griffiths, became the voices of a Welsh hymnic expression. While Charles Wesley and Williams were evangelists as well as poets, Griffiths wrote to convey her deeply personal and mystic experience of God; all three, nonetheless, used the hymn form to articulate poetically the experience and intensity of emotion in the journey of faith. Methodism’s religion of the heart is at the forefront of all its creeds, its mission, its ministry, but nowhere is this more evident than in its hymns. It is in the consideration of the manifestation and poetic functionality of that heart experience that the crux of this thesis lies.