A Wesleyan theology of happiness

In this thesis I have sought to construct a Wesleyan theology of happiness with close reference to the complete collection of John Wesley’s sermons. This theology is comprehensive because it engages with all the references to happiness across the 151 sermons and it is systematic because it connects to several different theological doctrines.

I have done the above through a forensic exploration of every reference to the word happiness across the sermon collection. In addition, I have noted the relationship of the word happiness to a group of pre-determined terms to map the semantic ecology for the word happiness in the sermon collection. I have conducted an extensive literature review into existing Wesleyan scholarship to critically assess what other scholars have said about this theological theme in Wesley’s work. I have also considered the historical context of the eighteenth-century to assess what influential ideas about happiness existed and to what extent these sources may have influenced Wesley.

I have discovered that there are numerous references to happiness in the complete collection of sermons and that inferences can be drawn from the application of Content Analysis that suggest that happiness in Wesley is theocentric and teleological in character, that it is integral to his way of salvation, and that it plays a key role in his understanding of the shape and form of Christian discipleship in the context of gathered Christian communities with a methodist identity.

In addition to the above, the thesis has also demonstrated that the British Methodist Church should be more intentional, creative, and systematic in its engagement with the Wesleyan theological tradition and in its scholarly engagement with the sermons. The thesis has also shown the wisdom and integrity of engaging with the whole Wesley, rather than working solely with the standard 44 sermons of the British Methodist Church.