Wesley Center Online
December 1785
DECEMBER 5, Monday, and so the whole week, I spent every hour I could spare in the unpleasing but necessary work of going through the town, and begging for the poor men who had been employed in finishing the new chapel. It is true
DEC. 1, Thursday
4 Prayed, Mag.; 8 tea, conversed; 8.30 Rev. xx. 12! chaise; 1.30 Cant [erbury], at brother
C[-]tlord’s, dinner, conversed, prayer; 3 Mag., prayed, tea, conversed, prayer; 6 Eph. V. 14! 7 communion, supper, conversed, prayer; 10.
Friday 2
4 Prayed, tea; 5 coach, Roch[ester], tea, coach; 4 at home, dinner, prayed, tea, letters; 8 supper; 9 conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Saturday 3
4 Prayed, letters; 8 tea, prayer, on business, letters; 1.15 dinner, conversed, prayer, on business; 2.30 visited many, tea, prayed; 6 prayers, Heb. ix. 7! communion, supper, Pen[ry], on business; 9.30.
Sunday 4
4 Prayed, letter; 8 the preachers; 9.30 prayers, Rom. xv. 6! communion, at brother Teulon’s; 1 dinner, within ; 2.15 sleep, prayed, the leaders, tea, prayed; 5 prayers, Heb. x. 36! 6 society, lovefeast, supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Monday 5
4 Prayed, I Pet. ii. 17, select society, tea, writ narrative, visited many; 12 select society; 1 at brother Sn[-] ll’s, dinner, conversed, prayer, visited many; 5 tea, conversed; 6.30 prayers, Heb. xi. I! supper, the bands, prayer; 9.30.
Tuesday 6
4 Prayed, I Pet. ii. 17! letters; 8 tea, conversed, prayer, visited many; 11 letters; 1.30 visited; 2 dinner, conversed, prayer, visited; 4.30 letters, within, tea, prayer, prayed, writ narrative; 6.30 prayers, Heb. xii. 28! the leaders, supper, within, prayer; 9.30.
Wednesday 7
4 Prayed, letters, tea, prayer; 8.30 visited many; 11.30 letters; 12 visited many; 2.30 at W. Wri[ght’s], dinner, conversed, prayed; 5 tea, conversed; 6 prayers, Heb. xiii. 22! 7 communion, chaise; 8 supper, within, prayer; 9.30.
Thursday 8
4 Prayed, letters; 7.30 walk, at sister Cheesem[ent]’s, tea, conversed, prayer, walk; 9.30 New[ing]ton; 10 letters, Mag.; 1.30 dinner, conversed, Mag., prayed; 5.30 tea, conversed, prayed, Mag.; 8.30 supper, prayer; 9.30.
I am not obliged to do this; but if I do it not, nobody else will.
Sun.11.[1] - I strongly enforced St. James’s beautiful description of ‘the wisdom from above.’ How hard is it to fix, even on serious hearers, a lasting sense of the nature of true religion! Let it be right opinions, right modes of worship, or anything rather than right tempers![2]
Friday 9
4 Prayed, Journal; 9.30 accounts; 11 read narrative; 2 dinner, conversed, prayer; 4.30 prayed, tea, within; 7 I Pet. i. 18, supper within, prayer; 9.30.
Saturday 10
4 Prayed, letters, read narrative; 8 tea, conversed, prayer, walk, visited 10.30 letters, on business; 1 at brother Thornton’s, dinner, letters; 4.15 prayed, tea, visited; 6.30 prayers, Phil. ii. 13! Communion, supper, Pen[ry] on business; 9.30.
Sunday 11
4 Prayed, letters, Chapel; 9.30 prayers, Psa. cxxvi. 6! communion dinner, sleep, prayed, the leaders, prayers, Jam. iii. 17! tea; 5 society, coach, society, writ narrative, supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Heb. ix. 8, Psa. cxxvi. 6.
Monday 12
4 Prayed, I Pet. ii. 21! select society, within, tea, prayer; 8.30 beg for debt; 12 select society, dinner, walk; 3 visited, tea; 5.30 prayed; 6.30 prayers, Jam. v. 10, etc., supper, the bands; 9.30.
Tuesday 13
4 Prayed, tea, walk, letters; 1.15 dinner, conversed, prayer, visited some, 4 letter, prayed; 5 tea, conversed; 6 read narrative; 6.30 prayers, I Pet. ii. 21! the leaders, supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Thur. 22.—I preached at Highgate. Considering how
Wednesday 14
4 Prayed, letters; 8 tea, conversed, prayer, begged; 11 at home, letters, visited; 2.30 at Mr. Wo., dinner, conversed; 4 prayed ; 5 tea, conversed; 6 prayers, i Pet. ii. 24, etc., communion; 8 supper, conversed; 9 prayer; 9.30.
Thursday 15
4 Prayed, letters, tea, prayer; 9 begged; 11.30 letters; 1chaise, Shackle[wel]l, Mag.; 2 dinner, conversed; 4 prayed ; 5 tea, conversed; 6.30 Heb. ix. 27 I Mag.; 8 supper, conversed; 9.30 prayer; 10.
Friday 16
4.30 Prayed, Mag.; 7 tea, conversed, prayer; 8 Charles; 9 prayer; 11 letters ; 1 prayer, communion, dinner; 3 letters; 4 visited, tea, Chapel, letters, supper, I Pet. ii. 25! coffee, prayer; 12.30.
Saturday 17
6 Prayed, tea, walk; 8 on business, letters; 1 at sister Shakesp[eare’s], dinner, conversed, Mag.; 3.30 prayed; 4 tea, conversed, walk, tea, conversed, prayer; 6 prayers, 2 Cor. VI. 2! communion, supper; 8.15 Pen[ry], on business; 9.30.
Sunday 18
4 Prayed, errata, Sp[italfield]s; 9.30 Isai. xxx. 18! communion, visited; 1 dinner, conversed, prayer; 2 sleep, prayed; 3 St. Swithin’s, prayers, Matt. vii. 24, tea; 5 prayers, 2 Pet. i. 5, etc., society, Mag., supper, prayer; 9.30.
Monday 19
4 Prayed, I Pet. iii. 1-8, select society, tea, errata; 10 visited; 12 select society, coach; 1 at brother Cadd., dinner, conversed, prayer; 3.30 Chapel, errata, tea, conversed, prayer, errata; 6 prayed, prayers, 2 Pet. ii. 9! supper, the bands, errata; 9.30.
Tuesday 20
4 Prayed, I Pet. iii. 7, 8, errata, walk; 8 visited, errata, dinner, conversed, prayer; 4 prayed; 4.30 tea, conversed; 6.30 prayers, 2 Pet. iii. 6, etc., the leaders; 8 supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Wednesday 21
4 Drest, sleep, errata; 7.30 walk, Hi[gh]b[ur]y Place, tea, conversed, letters, errata; 2 dinner, conversed, errata; 5 prayed, errata ; 8.15 supper, conversed, prayer; 9.45.
Deut. v. 7; I Jo. iv. 19! I Cor. i. 18; Lu. ii. 14.
Thursday 22
4 Prayed, errata; 8 tea, conversed, prayer, errata, walk, errata; 12 coach Highgate; 1 dinner, conversed, errata; 4.30 prayed, tea, conversed; 6 2 Cor. vi. I; 7.30 errata, supper, conversed, prayer; so.
magnificent a place this is, I do not wonder so little good has been done here. For what has religion to do with palaces?[3]
Sun. 25 (being Christmas Day).—I preached at the new, chapel early in the morning, and in the evening; about eleven at West Street.
Mon. 26.—I baptized a young woman brought up an Anabaptist; and God bore witness to His ordinance, filling her heart, at the very time, with peace and joy unspeakable.
Friday 23
4.45 Prayed, errata; 7 tea, conversed; 8 Deut. v. 7! prayer, conversed; so coach ; 11 letters, errata; 2 coach, at sister Cheesm[ent]’s, conversed, dinner, prayer; 4 walk, at home; 5 tea, conversed, prayed, errata; 8 supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Saturday 24[4]
4 Prayed, letters; 8 tea, letters; 1.15 dinner, conversed, prayer, visited some; 4.30 tea, conversed, prayer; 6 prayers, I Jo. iv. 19! Supper, conversed, Pen[ry], Mrs. Wraxal! on business ; 9.30
Christmas Day
3.30 Drest, prayer, Cor. I. 18, tea, writ narrative; 8 Chapel; 9.30 prayers, Lu. ii. 54! communion; at sister Key[sall]’s, dinner, converse prayer; 3 sleep, the leaders, tea, prayed, Lu. ii. 14! the lovefeast supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Monday 26
4 Prayed, I Pet. iii. 8, etc., select society, errata; 8 tea, visited some; 10 Chapel, prayers, Acts vii. 55, etc., communion; 1 dinner, conversed, prayer, errata; 4 prayed, at sister B[-]ld’s; 5 tea, conversed, prayer; 6.30 prayers, Dan. v. 7! supper, christened, the bands: 9.30.
Tuesday 27
4 Prayed, I Pet. iii. 6, etc., errata, walk, errata; 10 prayers, Jo. xxi. 22, communion; 1 at brother Barris, dinner, conversed, prayer; 3.30 errata, prayed; 4.30 at T[homas] Rank[in’s]; 5 tea, conversed, prayer; 6 prayers, Ecc. vi. 12, the leaders; 8 supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
This week I endeavoured to point out all the errata in the eight volumes of the Arminian Magazine. This must be done by me; otherwise several passages therein will be unintelligib1e.[5]
Wednesday 28
4 Prayed, errata; 8 tea, within, prayer, read narrative; 1.30 at Mrs. Tighe’s; 2 dinner, conversed; 3.30 prayed, tea; 5 coach; 6 read prayers, I Jo. v. 3, communion, supper, conversed, prayer; 9.30.
Thursday 29
4 Prayed, Pet. iii. 14, etc., communion, letters; 8 tea, conversed, prayer, errata; 1.15 at T[homas] Oliv[ers’], within, errata, prayed; 4.30 at T[homas] Rank[in’s], tea, conversed, prayer, prayed; 6.30 read prayers, Heb. viii. 10! 7.30 the bands, supper, within, prayer; 9.30.
Friday 30
4 Prayed, letters, errata; 12 the females; 1 prayer; 2 visited some; 2.30 dinner; 3 conversed, prayer, visited; 4 prayed, tea, conversed, prayer; 6 prayed; 7 errata, supper, prayer; 9.30.
Saturday 31[6]
4 Prayed, letters, tea, prayer; 8.15 Mag.; 1 dinner, conversed, visited; 2.30 errata, prayed; 4 walk, tea, conversed; 5.30 prayed; 6 prayers, Jude 21, communion, supper, Pen[ry], on business; 9.30.
I Cor. i. 18, Jude 21.
[1] On Dec. 10 he wrote from near London to Mrs. Winscom, a poetess then residing in Bristol. He gives advice in a family trouble. (New ed. Wesley Letters.)
[2] On Dec. 14 he wrote from London to Miss Cooke (Works, vol. xiii. p. 96), on the same
day to C. Muckarsay and James Byron, a sharp, terse, disciplinary letter
(new ed. Wesley Letters cf. W.H.S. vol. i. pp. 140-5); and to their superintendent,
Thomas Wride, whom, as in former letters, he advises to be ‘mild and serious’
(Tyerman’s Life of Wesley, vol. iii. p. 467). On Dec. 21 he wrote from Highbury Place to
Mr. John Gardner approving the Strangers’ friend and Society, and offering
a subscription.(ibid. p. 253).
[3] See above, vol. vi. p. 378.
[4] On Dec. 24 he wrote a letter from City Road to the Gentleman’s Magazine, which he defends the political reputation of his brother Samuel, whom Mr. Badcock declared had always borne the character of a Jacobite.
‘ Most of those,’ writes Wesley, ‘who gave him this title did not distinguish between a Jacobite and a Tory;
whereby I mean, one that believes God, not the people, to be the origin of all civil power. In this sense he was a Tory; so was my father; so am I. But I am no more a Jacobite than I am a Turk; neither was my brother. (Works, vol. xiv p. 360.)
[5] This task he pursued for some time, as the Diary shows. The results were bound up after the index of the Arm. Mag. 1786. They fill six and a half Pages, which are headed, ‘Many Erratas.’ See below, p. 525.
[6] He wrote from London to Mrs. Fletcher (new ed. Wesley Letters).