Ireland's Methodists are celebrating the 250th anniversary of the arrival of John Wesley in Dublin on this date in 1747, after a 26hour sea journey from England.
The event begins at 2 p.m. with 18th-century children's singing games at Custom House Quay. Wesley himself (actor David Cuffe) will arrive at City Quay at 3 p.m., accompanied by a flotilla from Poolbeg Yacht Club.
Leeson Park Players will re-enact the arrival to music by the Garda Band and the Wexford Male Voice Choir. At 4 p.m. Wesley will be greeted at the Custom House by the Lord Mayor of Dublin, Mr John Stafford, the president of the Methodist Church in Ireland, Dr Norman Taggart, and representatives of other churches.
On the first of 21 visits, Wesley came to inspect the work of the Methodist Society in Dublin, established by one of his preachers, Thomas Williams. Wesley visited every county except Kerry, travelling 30 miles a day on horseback and preaching in the open air. He is said to have ridden 250,000 miles and preached 40,000 times in his lifetime.
The Methodist societies he founded separated from the Anglican Church and evolved into a separate Christian denomination, following his death in 1791.
Methodists believe in the supreme authority of scripture, salvation by grace through faith, and the priesthood of all believers whereby every member can approach God without any human intermediary.
There are 59,669 Methodists in Ireland, with 18,480 of them in Belfast, 12,659 in the Antrim area, 9,876 in Down, 7,473 in the Portadown area, 3,594 in Derry, 3,324 in Enniskillen/Sligo, 2,299 in the Dublin district, and 1,964 in the midlands and south.
Another event marking the anniversary will be a concert, "Born in Song", at the National Concert Hall on September 13th.
