Revelation and Reason : Wesleyan responses to eighteenth century rationalism
By Arthur Skevington Wood The Wesley Fellowship, 1992 103 pages ISBN 0 951 633 228
“This book examines the reaction of John Wesley himself together with two of his associates –
John William Fletcher and Joseph Benson – to the challenges of reductionist rationalism in the 18th century as it threatened the foundations of the Christian faith,” (Preface)
The work of Arthur Skevington Wood, Principal of Cliff College (1977-1983), as a well-qualified and competent historian, is thorough and detailed in examining the relevant sources for an in-depth enquiry of this kind. The pages of references bear ample testimony to his scholarship and wide reading and research.
The author makes the point that his researches are not only of antiquarian interest – they bear strongly on the contemporary situation.
Were John Wesley and his associates in the evangelical movement so preoccupied with the urgent task of evangelism that they had no time or interest to face up to the theological implications of deistic and Unitarian tendencies ?
Not so; the evidence is clearly presented in this book.