Thursday, June 3, 2010

Hello!
Glad you found my blog.... I am trying to get the word out about the Bible Christians.... oh, no! you've probably said, not a bible thumper!! Nope, not a bible thumper. The Bible Christians were a branch of the Methodist body (there were five branches here in Canada) They originated in Devon and Cornwall in England, and when these people started to emigrate to Canada (and other places) they took their religious beliefs with them. They started to arrive here about 1830 and the flow of people from England's south west ( often referred to as The West Country) continued well into the 20th century.
When I was researching my own family tree I discovered they were Bible Christians and I didn't know what that was - so like any good researcher would do, I researched them! I decided after a couple of hours researching that I might write a book about my findings - it was all THAT interesting! And like an over-eager achiever, I said so out there on the web for the world to see! However, as the process continued I began to get a little worried - there didn't seem to be much available about the Bible Christians, who they were and where they came from, and I began to wonder if I'd ever get enough material for a book. It took me two years of hard slogging, but eventually not only did I get enough material for a book - I got three books out of it!!! That was in 2005.
Now, I am saving material sent to me by readers of my books and my website (see URL below) for another book, Bible Christian Companion.... it will have additional information and new photos and will compliment the huge amount of work already done.
I would be interested in hearing from anyone who has Bible Christian ancestors. You can leave a reply here on the Blog site or you can e-mail me privately.
Please visit my website. There are links there to contact me about what you find.
I look forward to hearing from you! Please use my personal e-mail address to contact me: sherleetooze@interlinks.net
Sher

July 8, 2010
Well, it's been one month since I started this blog.... I had intended to add to it each Monday morning, however, as Robbie Burns so eloquently put it... life sometimes stinks and things change! Had he been alive today I think he'd agree with my interpretation of his poem.

The Bible Christian Project is close to my heart. It is a very interesting study. People from all walks of life joined this religious group in England's west country before emigrating to Canada, USA and Australia/NZ, in the early to mid 1800's. After emigration many never saw a Bible Christian preacher again, as this off-shoot of the Methodists never had the financial base from which to support ministers in all areas of our large continent of North America, nor the large continent of Australia. However, those who did find themselves in an area served by the "Connexion" counted themselves lucky indeed.
Not only did the people have a hard time chopping new homes out of the bush, but the ministers, too, had a terrible time finding their way through the bush, finding "the lost sheep" in the wilderness, as one minister so aptly put it. The experiences of both the ministers and the people they served can be found in the three books I've written on the subject:
A Corner For the Preacher - the story of the emigration of the people, their journey, and the finding of their new homes in the bush.
Bible Christian Chapels of the Canadian Conference - don't let the title fool you - this book includes all the chapels built in the USA too - over 230 chapels and many never before published photos.
The Damascus Road - a short biography of all the ministers who served the Canadian Conference between 1831 and 1884 (the date of union with other Methodist bodies) with a chapter about Shebbear College in Devon, England where many of them studied.
These books can be viewed at my website. Please be in touch with me via my personal e-mail address sherleetooze@interlinks.net to give me your thoughts or to tell me about your own Bible Christian ancestors.
Sher