Wesleyan - Definition and Overview

• Wesleyan is the adjective form of Wesley, referring either to John Wesley, the founder of Methodism (a current within Protestant Christianity) or to one or another of the Methodist denominations deriving from that current. The Wesleyan Church, split from the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1843.

• A Wesleyan is any person who adopts the principles of Wesleyanism.

• In a closely related usage, Wesleyan may refer to the theological emphasis on sanctification, characteristic of the holiness movement of which Wesley was part.

• Wesleyan used as a noun may refer to one of many universities and liberal arts colleges named after John Wesley. These include:

  United States

  Dakota Wesleyan University, in South Dakota

  Illinois Wesleyan University, in Illinois

  Indiana Wesleyan University, in Indiana

  Iowa Wesleyan College, in Iowa

  Kentucky Wesleyan College, in Kentucky

  Nebraska Wesleyan University, in Nebraska

  North Carolina Wesleyan College, in North Carolina

  Ohio Wesleyan University, in Ohio

  Oklahoma Wesleyan University, in Oklahoma

  Roberts Wesleyan College, in New York

  Southern Wesleyan University, in South Carolina

  Tennessee Wesleyan College, in Tennessee

  Texas Wesleyan University, in Texas

  Virginia Wesleyan College, in Virginia

  Wesleyan College, in Georgia

  Wesleyan University, in Connecticut

  West Virginia Wesleyan College, in West Virginia

  Global

  Nagasaki Wesleyan University, Japan

  Wesleyan University, in the Philippines