The ecumenical movement is well-served by popular histories of several denominations. For this reason a recent book, History of the Presbyterian Church in Ireland, by Finlay Holmes, was widely acclaimed.
More recently, The Methodists in Ireland: A Short History, by Dudley Levison Cooney, has appeared in the bookshops. Mr Cooney is a retired Methodist minister who has served in circuits North and South. He is a historian, president of the Wesleyan Historical Society and of the Old Dublin Society.
The early Methodists were native Irish. A failure to make much of an impression is explained by cultural and political factors. Mr Cooney suggests that speaking in English and asking prospective members to support the established Church of Ireland did not induce a mainly Catholic population to become Methodists.
It will surprise some to read that only in 1878 was the church established as a separate denomination. Until then it was an evangelistic movement within the established church. But in time certain causes made ordination of its own clergy and separation inevitable.
Methodists, apparently, were typically unionist in politics. As a church, Mr Cooney writes, it was opposed to the United Irishmen in 1798 and in support of the government of the day. It opposed Catholic emancipation in 1829 and the granting of Home Rule for Ireland in the 1870s. He suggests that loyalty to "king and country" was the result of a respect for law and order on the part of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism and a membership not greatly "politicised", with few or no radicals within the ranks.
Like the Presbyterian Church, the Methodist Church after the Easter Rising in 1916 experienced a rapid decline in numbers. The membership went down in the State from 16,000 to approximately 5,000 today. Mr Cooney attributes this decline to the departure of British forces from the State, economic conditions and some implications of the Ne Temere decree.
Vintners will recoil from the news that "the ethical stance Methodists are probably most widely noted for is that of total abstinence". However, while Wesley detested ardent spirits, like temperance advocates in Presbyterianism, he was tolerant of ales and wines.
A rule within Methodism, as a result of abstinence movements in the 19th century, prohibits consumption of alcohol on Methodist premises. Most Irish Methodists, Mr Cooney asserts, are total abstainers.
The foundation of the Methodist College in Belfast, the Wesley College in Dublin and Gurteen Agricultural College in north Tipperary by the Methodists have contributed to education in this country. And they have established charitable institutions caring for the poor, the elderly and the orphan.
Methodism has not been unaffected by the Troubles - changing demography of Protestant and Catholic has meant the disappearance of no fewer than seven Methodist Churches. But Methodists of the stature of the Rev Dr Eric Gallagher, Dr Stanly Worrall and Mr Gordon Wilson have been indefatigable in the cause of reconciliation and peacemaking. This book should be a must on the shelves of the ecumenist.
A meeting in Church House, Belfast in September, 1922 formed the first executive of a newly organised Boys' Auxiliary. This was an organisation for young males between the ages of 16-25. Its members pledged "to help others and work for the cause of Christ in all the world". A milestone in the history of the auxiliary was the purchase of Guysmere in north Antrim by the Rev Wallace Bruce. Today, young people enjoy memorable summer camps.
Mr Herbie Mills, a former camp commandant, has complied, A Short History of the Boys' Auxiliary. The history is replete with photographs and anecdotes of camp characters of the past, guaranteed to help generations of campers recall the happiest of times. Items included of special interest are a copy of the service of remembrance for 26 members who died in the second Word War and a copy of the camp song by the Rev W.F. Marshall, entitled, Down Among The Earwigs at Guysmere - A Poetic Tribute to the Boys' Auxiliary.