John A. Jillions

Partakers of the Life Divine

Theology

“S T Kimbrough Jr. demonstrates exhaustively that mystical, sacramental union with God and participation in the divine nature is at the heart of Charles Wesley's thought and experience, parallel to the Fathers of the Eastern Church. This contrasts starkly with prevailing Protestant interpretations of Wesleyan thought. For Orthodox readers, the fact that Wesley's understanding was shaped entirely outside the boundaries of the Eastern Church may be akin to the apostle Peter's discovery that Gentiles could have the same experience of the Holy Spirit as the Jerusalem community did on Pentecost. Charles Wesley could thus be a bridge of shared spiritual life, looking toward the never-ending day of God's eternal kingdom, when 'Love, like death, hath all destroyed / Rendered all distinctions void: / Names, and sects, and parties fall; / Thou, O Christ, art ALL in ALL!”