Methodist Church in Sri Lanka
| Methodist Church of Sri Lanka | |
|---|---|
 |
|
| Classification | Protestant (Methodist) |
| Associations | World Council of Churches, Christian Conference of Asia, National Christian Council of Sri Lanka, World Methodist Council |
| Official website | methodistsrilanka.org |
The Methodist Church of Sri Lanka (Sinhala: ශ්රි ලංකා මෙතොදිස්ත සභාව Sri Lanka Methodista Sabhava) is a Protestant Christian denomination in Sri Lanka. Its seat is in Colombo and was established on 29 June 1814. It is a member of the World Council of Churches, the Christian Conference of Asia, the National Christian Council of Sri Lanka and the World Methodist Council.
Thomas Coke, the right-hand man of the Reverend John Wesley, was chiefly responsible for the overseas mission to Ceylon (now Sri Lanka) that set sail from Portsmouth harbor on 30 December 1813. During the voyage, Coke became ill, died, and was buried at sea on 3 May 1814. James Lynch, Thomas Hall, William Ault, George Erskine and Benjamin Clough arrived in Galle on 29 June 1814. Squance, Clough and Lynch made it to the Galle Harbour, and the boat carrying Ault and Erskine with their personal effects drifted towards Weligama and they landed there early next day.
The missionaries travelled to different parts of Ceylon, with Squance and Lynch to Jaffna, Ault to Batticaloa, Erskine to Matara, and Clough remaining in Galle. Harvard who remained in Bombay due to family circumstances came to Galle in early 1815 and was posted to Colombo and Clough too joined him leaving Galle to be looked after by Erskine. In mid 1815, they purchased a portion of land on Dam Street and built a chapel that still stands there today as the oldest Methodist Church in Asia. They later started a children's Sunday school and a printing press in Colombo. Rev. Harvard, a printer by profession, supervised the work and started printing books for children. Meanwhile, a chapel called ‘The Wesleyan Mission House’ was completed and opened for worship in December 1816.
In spite of attitudes against the education of woman at the time, in 1834, the missionaries established the Vembadi Girls' High School.
...
Wikipedia