CEJ: Series 3, Vol. 9, No.

2 Copyright 2012

CHRISTIAN NURTURE AND CONVERSION:

A CONVERSATION BETWEEN HORACE
BUSHNELL AND JOHN WESLEY
m
M ark A. Maddix
Northwest Nazarene University

Abstract: This article provides an overview of Horace BushnelVs view of Christian nurture and its
impact on the field of Christian education. Specific attention is given to how BushnelVs thesis has
been critiqued and how it shapes current approaches to Christian nurture. The article also explores
John Wesley's view of childhood education and conversion. The article includes a conversation be-
tween Bushnell and Wesley on issues o f original sin, infant baptism, Christian nurture, and corner-
sion. The article concludes by providing practical approaches to developing educational ministries
that focus on Christian nurture and formation.

Key Words: Christian nurture, conversion, evangelism, Christian formation, and Wesleyan theology.

Introduction

My wife and I have two children. Both of our children were reared in a
Christian home. They were very active in the local church and we reared them
to love God and neighbor. We provided a good context for them to grow into
mature adults and to emerge as faithful Christians. I am reminded of one spe-
cific story about my son Nathan. He was about 9 years old and, when praying
before bedtime, asked, “Dad, do you think I am a Christian?” I responded,
“What do you think Nathan?” He said, “I believe that Jesus died for my sins.”
I affirmed that Jesus died for his sins and said he was a Christian. Nathan
seemed satisfied with my response and then we prayed together. Realizing
that assent to believe is not the only requirement for salvation, in that mo-
ment I struggled with whether it was important for me to recognize his
Christian heritage or whether to have him pray the sinner’s prayer.
This experience and others in ministry have challenged me regarding
how Christian educators view Christian nurture and conversion. I believe
they represent some of the challenges in ministry on how we educate and
practice conversion experiences and Christian nurture. It seems that many
310 Christian Education Journal

Christian educators give more attention to conversion and less to nurture.

This struggle has led me to examine more closely the writings of Horace
Bushnells classic book Christian Nurture. Since I am from the Wesleyan-
Holiness tradition, it has also challenged me to reflect more closely on John
Wesley’s understandings of childhood education, conversion, and evangel-
ism. The article provides an overview of Horace Bushnells view of Christian
nurture and its impact on the field of Christian education. Specific attention
is given to how BushnelFs thesis has been critiqued and how it shapes current
approaches to Christian nurture. It also explores John Wesleys view of child-
hood education and formation. The article includes a conversation between
Bushnell and Wesley on issues of original sin, infant baptism, Christian nur-
ture, and conversion. Finally, it concludes by providing congregations with
practical approaches to developing educational ministries that foster Chris-
tian nurture and formation.

Horace Bushnell

One of the most extensive books written on Horace Bushnell was The
Puritan as Yankee: A Life of Horace Bushnell (2002) by Robert Bruce Mullin.1
Mullin states that Bushnell was recognized as the father of American theolog-
ical liberalism, the great champion of Christian education, and the paradig-
matic figure of 19th-century American Protestantism, (p. 1). In Mullins text,
he asserts that Bushnell was not a great 19th-century American theologian
but a great preacher. Mullin reminds us that Bushnell was living in a period of
political, social, and religious change. He was an innovator who was always
interested in improving what he found before him. He was both a Yankee and
a Puritan: a Yankee in his love of innovation, a Puritan in his abiding trust in
the values of his childhood (p. 4).
Bushnell was born in Litchfield, Connecticut, on April 14,1802. Neither
of his parents where members of the established church. His mother was
reared in an Episcopal Church. His father was a farmer who was drawn to the
new Methodists (Mullin, 2002, p. 18). They were attracted to the Methodist
preachers’ emphasis on human freedom and their rejection of predestination.
Both of his parents were uncomfortable with the strict Calvinism that
marked the new divinity clergy. Later they joined the established church and
attended the Congregational church in New Preston, Connecticut, but they
were still considered outsiders. Horace was greatly influenced by his mother.
She educated her six children and gave particular attention to Horace by en-
couraging him in his education (Mullin, 2002, p. 20). What Horace remem-
bered most about his mother was her character expressed in patience, dedica-
tion, and wisdom. Because of Horace’s focus on religion, he learned from
MADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 311

home the facts and principles of the Christian faith. Later, BushnelPs religious
sensibilities would eventually become out of step with those of his contempo-
raries (Mullin, 2002, p. 25).
In 1821, at the age of 19, Bushnell made a profession of Christian faith.
This was his conversion experience, an inner transformation that reflects the
Puritan understanding, which was necessary for membership in the church.
In 1823, Bushnell entered Yale College where he studied theology. He gradu-
ated from Yale in 1827, and after a brief experience as a teacher in Norwich,
Connecticut, and as a journalist in New York City, he returned to Yale to study
law (Downs, 1983, p. 43). During his time at Yale, Bushnell developed deep
intellectual doubts regarding his Christian faith. In a revival at Yale, he felt a
moral responsibility to the young men under his leadership to find God.
Later, reflecting on this period of his life, Bushnell indicated that the ultimate
questions of religion are questions of the heart rather than of logic (Downs,
1983, p. 43).
After a continual struggle with his personal faith, Bushnell had a unique
experience of illumination that he later regarded as his real conversion.
Bushnell studied for the ministry under the Calvinist theologian Nathaniel
Taylor, with whom he had sharp disagreements. He graduated from Yale in
1833 and was ordained pastor of the North Congregational Church in Hart-
ford, Connecticut, where he stayed until his retirement until 1859. He was
forced to resign due to a long-term illness. From this time until his death in
1876, he continued to publish books, sermons, and pamphlets (Downs,
1983, p. 44).
Bushnell, a prolific writer, wrote on topics of Christian nurture, natural-
ism and supernaturalism, Christology, the Trinity, atonement theories,
women s suffrage, and work and play. He was very controversial among his
peers, particularly as it relates to his views of Christian nurture, the atone-
ment, and the Trinity. Four of his most famous books include Christian Nur-
ture (1861), in which he opposed revivalism and argues for Christian families
to nurture their kids in the faith. Also, Nature and the Supernatural (1861) ex-
plored his view of miracles. The book emphasized the supernaturalness of
humans. Also, his book The Vicarious Sacrifice (1866) argued against tradi-
tional views of substitutionary, penal, or satisfaction theories of atonement
by embracing a moral view of the atonement. This view caused him much
grief among his Calvinistic colleagues and parishioners. His book God in
Christ (1851) was very controversial because of his view of the Trinity as “in-
strumentally three—three simply as related to our finite apprehension, and
the communication of Gods incommunicable nature” (p. 159). Attempts
were made to bring him to trial as a heretic, but they were unsuccessful. In
1852, his church unanimously withdrew from the local “consociation,” thus
removing any possibility of further action against Bushnell.
312 Christian Education Journal

Bushneil and Christian Nurture

Horace Bushnells book Christian Nurture (1861) focused on the true

idea of Christian education, that a child is to grow up a Christian. Bushnells
thesis was in contrast to the revivalism that assumed that a child would grow
up in sin and undergo the “technical experience” of a conversion (Mullin,
2002, p. 117). Bushnell understood revivalism because he was converted dur-
ing a revival at Yale in 1831 and had tried to recreate the revival spirit as a pas-
tor, but the results were not encouraging. “Bushnell believed the most dis-
heartening impediment to the Christian minister is the thought that religion
depends only on revivals” (Johnson, 1963, p. 108). This was a turning point
for Bushnell as he rejected revivalism and began to develop a theology of
Christian nurture centered around his thesis that “the child will grow up
Christian and never know himself as being otherwise” (Bushnell, 1861, p. 10).
He argued that instead of raising a child to be converted at a later date, which
was the practice and theory prevalent at that time, Christian parents should
raise their children from their earliest days to love God and to follow after his
ways (Downs, 1983, p. 44). His idea of Christian nurture was in direct conflict
with the emerging revivalist spirit of conversion. Bushnell combated the re-
vivalist by arguing that the aim of Christian education in the home was the
nurturing of Christian lifestyle and faith as a normal way of life. Christian
nurture assumed that the seed of right principle would be planted by the
family and the church, and when rightfully cultivated would bring forth a
true faith. For Bushnell, Christianization involved not so much a dramatic
decision but a process of formation (Mullin, 2002, p. 118).
Bushnell viewed this “organic connection” as an integral part of human
experience. He believed this process was unique to human beings. A distinc-
tion of humanity was to pass on to the next generation its gifts, principles,
and virtues, so why not by the same process pass on its Christian faith? For
Bushnell, the primary medium of the Christian faith was propagated by
Christian parents. To Bushnell, to live a distinctly Christian life was to nur-
ture (Downs, 1983, p. 45). Bushnell (1861) states,

How different the kind of life that is necessary to bring them up in con-
version and beget them anew in the spirit of loving obedience to God, at
a point even prior to all definite recollection. This is Christian nurture,
because it nurtures Christians and because it makes an element of Chris-
tian grace in the house. It invites, it nourishes hope, it breaths in love, it
forms the new life as holy, though beautiful prejudice in the soul, before
its opening the full flowering of intelligence arrives, (p. 76)

He believed that children of believing parents should be treated differently

than children of unbelievers. Bushnell believed that children should be bap­
M ADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 313

tized as infants and then be regarded as having the basic elements of their
parents’ faith in them. It was at this point that his critics attacked him because
they thought he did not believe in original sin and that he rejected the need of
repentance and conversion (Downs, 1983, p. 45). Bushnell (1861) argued by
presenting his view of the organic connection by stating,

Once more, if we narrowly examine the relationship of the parent and

child we shall not fail to discover something like a law of organic connec-
tion, as regards character, subsisting between them. Such a connection as
makes it easy to believe, and natural to expect that the faith of one will be
propagated in the other. Perhaps I should rather say, such a connection as
induced the conviction that the character of one is actually included in
that of the other as a seed is formed in the capsule, (pp. 26-27)

Bushnell was arguing that just as there was a natural process of heredity that
passes on our natural characteristics to our children, faith was also hereditary.
He believed that the home and parental influences were of primary impor-
tance in the faith development of children. This organic connection was the
heart of Christian nurture.
Not only does the family provide the primary avenue of Christian nur-
ture for the child, Bushnell also places a strong emphasis on the role of the
church in fostering faith formation. He felt the family should not be alone in
the nurture of children: “It belongs to the church of God, according to the de-
gree of its social power over you and in you and around your children, to bear
a part of the responsibility with you” (Bushnell, 1861, p. 12). He also believed
there was no distinction between the family and the church. The family was
considered to be an extension of the church. It is at this point that Bushnell
received the most criticism. As Perry Downs (1983) states, “His concern for
the spiritual life of each parent, and his desire to see children of believers be
integrated into the life of the church, all grew out of his understanding of the
organic unity of the family” (p. 46). From his view of the organic connection
of parents and their children, it was imperative that Christian parents provide
a strong model of faith for their children. For Bushnell, there was a direct re-
lationship between the piety of the parents and the Christian development of
the children.

John Wesley and Christian Nurture

The influence of John Wesley on 18th-century England is well docu-

mented. His passion for conversion, social reform, spiritual formation, and
education was central to the success of the revivalist movement of the 18th
century. Wesleys theology of Christian nurture and evangelism was shaped
314 Christian Education Journal

by his own experiences. His early years of growing up in the rectory influ-
enced his understanding of Christian nurture, primarily expressed by his
mother Susanna Wesley. As a strong disciplinarian, she cared for children ac-
cording to rule and method. She provided the primary education of her chil-
dren and had a significant influence on the formation of John. Susanna
would spend six hours a day in teaching where instruction was serious and
thorough, and where loud talking and boisterous playing were strictly forbid-
den (Prince, 1926, p. 104). Susanna looked upon all her children as talents
committed to her under trust by God, and although she desired that they
should be versed in useful knowledge, it was her principle intention to save
their souls.
After the near tragic death of John during the burning of the Epworth
rectory, Susanna made a habit of spending one evening a week with each
child separately. She devoted Thursday evening to John and was especially
careful of him, seeing in his miraculous escape from the fire some deep prov-
idential meaning (Wesley, 1872/1976, 3:32-34). As John Prince (1926) states,
“He [Wesley] derived more of his convictions concerning the education of
children from his cultured and pious mother, Mrs. Susanna Wesley, than
from any other source” (p. 104). During the fathers absences from Epworth
she continued family worship and held services Sunday evenings for her chil-
dren and servants, whom neighbors also joined, often packing the house.
Susanna s theology was to educate children into salvation, which influ-
enced John’s approach to childhood education. She provided nurture and
care for John in the midst of a regimented life. She permitted her children to
play games of chance and skill, and card games, in the Epworth home (Prince,
1926, p. 108). Susannas methods of child rearing and education are displayed
in The Way of Education (Wesley, 1872/1986,3:43-39), a letter written to John
at his own request for the details of her method of raising children. It reveals
a discipline that was strict and persistent, but withal calm and unhurried. It
shows that Susanna governed by inflexibility, ruled nearly every detail of her
childrens lives—their physical growth, their play, their study and work, and
their piety and devotion (Prince, 1926, pp. 114-115).
Wesley, following his mother, conceived the training of children to be a
twofold task. One branch was discipline, the other reading (Prince, 1926, p.
115). The disciplinary work was to correct the bias of nature by curing the
diseases of nature. It is done chiefly in two ways, the one negative and the
other positive. The growth of the disease should not be stimulated; it should
not be fed. Also, parents should follow positive methods to root out the dis-
eases and to heal them (Prince, 1926, p. 115). Thus, the parent’s task was that
of a disciplinarian. The religious instruction of children begins before this
training in discipline was fully accomplished, merging with it and supple-
menting it.
M ADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 315

Susanna also considered the mastery of the child’s will to be the decisive
factor in character molding (Henderson, 1997, p. 35). However, life in the
Wesley household was not totally oppressive. Susanna and Samuel showed
real concern for the spiritual well-being of their children. Samuel influenced
his sons through his own devotion to scholarship. Also, Samuel was a dedi-
cated Anglican pastor who influenced his sons with a high view of the sacra-
ments and the Eucharist. In addition, the Wesley household embraced a
number of different styles of devotional literature (Schmidt, 1966,1:63). Wes-
ley was indeed indebted to his family. His childhood offered a strong blend of
Puritan devotion and Anglican sacramentalism and churchmanship, all of
which influenced Wesley’s own educational practice (Monk, 1966, p. 23).

Wesley^ Approach to Childhood Education and Formation

Wesley’s approach to childhood education and formation is often criti-

cized because of his regimented structure and lack of focus on play. In evalu-
ating Wesley’s view of childhood education and formation, it is important to
recognize the contextual differences of 18th-century England and current
childhood practices.
Wesley’s understanding of children began with his theological convic-
tions about anthropology. He believed in the fall of the human race from
birth, including its youngest members. According to Wesley, both young and
old are lacking in God’s natural and moral image, and sin dislodged the im-
age of God in all humanity and brought alienation from God. Wesley was pri-
marily concerned about the salvation of children. He believed that one of the
primary means to this end was through Christian education.
Wesley believed that the first step in the redemption of the child was in-
fant baptism (Wesley, 1975-2003, 10:188). Adults reached the new birth, the
beginning of spiritual transformation, through baptism, but only on the con-
dition that they repent and believe the gospel. Children reached spiritual life
through an outward sign of baptism without condition, for they could nei-
ther repent nor believe (Wesley, 1872/1986, 5:38). Baptism regenerates, justi-
fies, and gives infants the privileges of the Christian religion (Blevins & Mad-
dix, 2010, p. 69).
Wesley taught that through baptism, “a principle grace is infused” (Wes-
ley, 1872/1986,10:192) and “that infants need to be washed from original sin;
therefore they are proper subjects for baptism” (Wesley, 1872/1986, 10:193).
Thus, if children live, they never pass again through the door of repentance to
faith, unless they do actually commit sin. However, it was natural for children
to commit sin, for the principle of nature was still working in the child
(Towns, 1975, p. 320). The only way to conserve the innocence of children
316 Christian Education Journal

was to guard them completely against contamination during their helpless

years and at the same time build character. As a result, they may resist evil by
their own strength when they become of age.
Wesley centered on the salvation of children. He believed one of the pri-
mary means to this end occurs through Christian formation. In his sermon
“On the Education of Children,” defining sin as a disease, Wesley states,

Now, if these are the general diseases of human nature, is it not the grand
end of education to cure them? And is it not the part of all those to
whom God has entrusted the education of children, to take all possible
care, first, not to increase, not to feed, any of these diseases. (Wesley,
1975-2003, 3:352)

To this end, Wesley spent much of his ministry educating children. He be-
lieved that the disease of the sinful nature is cleansed through infant baptism.
His method incorporated both sacramental and formational processes that
represent his era yet opened the door to an alternative approach than those
shaped by the same Augustinian assumptions.
Wesley saw conversion as the next step in the Christian education of chil-
dren. Wesley believed that anyone who had sinned after baptism denied that
rite of baptism and, therefore, must have recourse to a new birth for salvation
(Blevins & Maddix, 2010, p. 70). Wesley felt conversion to be universally nee-
essary for children as well as for adults (Prince, 1926, p. 96). Adults obtained
the new birth, the beginning of spiritual transformation, through baptism,
only on the condition that they repent and believe the gospel. However bap-
tism, as an outward sign, also indicated children reached the spiritual life
without this condition, for they can neither repent nor believe (Wesley,
1872/1986, 5:38). For Wesley, infants begin in a state of original sin, and they
cannot be saved unless washed by baptism. Baptism initiates grace, justifies,
and gives infants the privileges of the Christian religion.
Baptism, for Wesley, represented not only a proper, but also a sacred duty
(Wesley, 1872/1986, 6:16). Rob Staples (1991) provides a summary of Wes-
ley’s rationale of infant baptism:

1. The benefit of baptism was the washing away of the guilt of original
sin.
2. Baptism was proper for children because of the continuity of the
covenant of grace God made with Abraham.
3. Small children should be brought to Christ, and admitted into the
Church, based on Matthew 19:13-14 and Luke 18:15.
4. Wesley found support for infant baptism in the practice of the
Church “in all ages and in all places” (pp. 167-172).
M ADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 317

Wesley saw infant baptism as an important step in the spiritual development

of the infant and entrance into the faith community.
For Wesley, infant baptism was coupled with Christian education in the
home, in the schools, and in the societies to make children Christians, in-
wardly and outwardly (Naglee, 1987, pp. 228-237). Prince (1926) states,
“Wesley did not hold that Christian education makes conversion unneces-
sary, but that Christian education and conversion supplement each other” (p.
96). Prince’s work on Wesley and childhood education states the purpose of
Christian education as expressed by Wesley:

The goal of all work with children at home, in the schools, in the
Methodist society is to make them pious, to lead to personal religion, and
to insure salvation. It is not merely to bring them up so that they do no
harm and abstain from outward sin, not to get them accustomed to the
use of grace, saying their prayers, reading their books, and the like, nor is
it to train them in right opinions. The purpose of religious education is
to instill in children true religion, holiness and the love of God and
mankind and to train them in the image of God. (pp. 87-88)

Wesley s theological views of children can be summed up in the follow-

ing statements (Blevins & Maddix, 2010, pp. 70-71). First, a child was a unit
of salvation. Wesley’s view of children was a product of 18th-century En-
gland. Elmer Towns (1975, pp. 322-324) builds on John Gross (1954) who
states, “He [Wesley] never considered a child as a child, but rather as a unit for
salvation, bred in sin, apt to evil, and altogether as a ‘brand to be plucked out
of the burning’” (p. 9). Second, genuine belief was possible in childhood
(Prince, 1926, p. 82). The belief in childhood conversions was most evident in
the childhood conversions at Kingswood school. Reports indicated children
at Kingswood experienced salvation between the ages of 6 to 14 years of age.
Wesley believed children remain ripe for spiritual change by age 10. Wesley
believed that by age 10, he had sinned away the “Washing of the Holy Ghost”
which he had received at baptism (Wesley, 1872/1986, 2:465). Third, Chris-
tian instruction should begin when the child has the ability to reason. Wesley
felt that the beginning of conscious religion instruction should coincide with
the dawn of reason (Wesley, 1872/1986,13:476). However, Wesley also taught
that parents were to talk to children about God before they had any evidence
that the child could comprehend. Fourth, the child must be educated out of
the disease of sin. Wesleys view of original sin was the foundation stone of his
concept of Christian education. John Prince views Wesley’s educational em-
phasis with children as primarily preparatory for conversion. Prince (1926)
states, “He [Wesley] gives the concept of training and education a wider con-
notation than they actually carry. He uses it to include not only the bringing
318 Christian Education Journal

of children to a knowledge and appreciation of the condition of salvation but

also to their personal appropriation of salvation” (pp. 99-100). Fifth, the will
of the child must be broken. Wesley’s discipline of children was harsh and se-
vere at times, especially when it came to this point. This was not to suggest
that he advocated a totalitarian or unrestrained form of child discipline (Es-
tep, 1997, p. 49). Sixth, teachers should provide effective teaching methods
and techniques. Wesley on occasion would speak to his teachers about peda-
gogical practices and techniques that included such things as how to talk, de-
velop a relationship of love, and educate children through repetition (Towns,
1975, p. 325).

Horace Bushnell and John Wesley

On the one hand, Horace BushnelPs theology of Christian nurture has

transformed the landscape of Christian education. He was considered the fa-
ther of the socialization approach to Christian education and the most influ-
ential pastor and American theologian of the 19th century. His focus on the
organic connection of faith between family and children runs counter to the
revivalist tradition of his day. On the other hand, John Wesley s practical di-
vinity through education, social reform, and conversion revolutionized 18th-
century England. His focus on education as a means to save souls became
foundational to his approach to childhood education. Given the influence of
these two giants of the faith, in what ways were their theology, views of Chris-
tian nurture, and conversion similar or different? What could Christian edu-
cators today gain from a conversation between these practical theologians?

Theological Foundations
One of the foundational theological views that impacts both Bushnell
and Wesley was the doctrine of original sin. Bushnell, educated from a
Calvinistic theological framework, was highly criticized for not embracing
the doctrine of total depravity and the sovereignty of God. Bennett Tyler,
president of the Theological Institute of Connecticut, rebuked Bushnell for
what he perceived was a departure from the cardinal doctrines of Calvinism
(Downs, 1983, p. 47). Tyler agreed that parents have a responsibility to nur-
ture their children in the faith, but it was wrong to expect that their child will
become a Christian. Tyler argued that regeneration belongs to God, not man,
and will be brought about by a sovereign act of God. Thus, Tyler believed that
Bushnell had removed the task of regeneration from the realm of divine pre-
rogative and had placed it only on the natural plane (Downs, 1983, p. 47).
Tylers view of human depravity reflects the classical Augustinian view, which
MADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 319

was the most common view in the West. Bushnell’s Christian Nurture side-
stepped the classic theological questions of human depravity and freedom of
the will, which were the theological topics of his day. His focus on the organic
connection and his image of character being passed on “as a seed is formed in
a capsule” raised more questions than answers (Mullin, 2002, p. 119). Bush-
nell had a more positive view of human persons, affirming the goodness of
human nature, with a realistic view that humans sin. He recognized that chil-
dren being nurtured in a loving Christian family will still struggle with anxi-
eties, experience failures, and need to own their own faith. In this regard,
Bushnell has a more positive view of human nature than his Calvinistic coun-
terparts, which was much closer to Wesley’s view of the fall of humanity.
Wesley believed that at creation God made humans in the image of God,
and this image was seen in terms of a natural image, or capacity to do good; a
political image, or an agency function for order; and a moral image, or the
holiness of God realized as our relationship with God was exercised. Because
of the fall this image was marred, and thereby needed to be restored. Runyon
(1998) explains that as a result of our separation from God, our “reason, will,
and freedom now serve distorted human ends . . . the ‘natural image’ of God
in us, though not lost in the sense of being erased, is corrupted Likewise
the ‘political image/ although we retain its capabilities, is also turned toward
perverse ends” (pp. 20-21).2
For Wesley, unlike Bushnell, humans have a marred imago dei, but
through prevenient grace no person is in a state of mere nature. In other
words, prevenient grace did not make human nature good, but empowered
humans to live holy lives despite their “natural” bent toward sin. Prevenient
grace empowers persons to the seeking, wooing love of God. This prevenient
grace was active from the beginning of a child’s life journey. There was no
time when God was not present to the child. Through this process, Wesley be-
lieved that humans, as actual living beings, were capable of being good. This
capacity was not their doing, but it was because of Gods prevenient, restora-
tive grace. Wesley gave emphasis to the optimism of grace, and Bushnells view
of the goodness of humans was counter to the Calvinistic view of total
depravity.
Also, Bushnell was criticized for his view of the spiritual state of humans.
Tyler argues that Bushnell forgets that the “sin of Adam has been passed on to
all humanity” (1848, p. 5). Tyler charged Bushnell with believing that the
child was Christian by nature, and to train a child in this regard was to train
the child in a state of delusion. This causes the child to think well of him-
self/herself and as a result he/she will be filled with spiritual pride and trust in
himself/herself rather than in God (1848, p. 16). This was where Wesley
would disagree with Bushnell. Wesley believed that a child was in a state of sin
and by the grace of God needs to be converted. Wesley would affirm the sin of
320 Christian Education Journal

Adam and its impact on all humanity, thus the need for redemption. He be-
lieved that through infant baptism the child was saved and believed that any-
one who had sinned after baptism denied that rite of baptism and, therefore,
must have recourse to a new birth for salvation. Wesley also believed that ed-
ucation was a “means of grace” to heal the disease of sin and to help redeem
and restore the image of God in fallen creatures.

Infant Baptism
Bushnell was also criticized by Tyler and his colleagues for his doctrine of
infant baptism (Downs, 1983, p. 47). In his book Christian Nurture (1861),
Bushnell dedicated two chapters to arguing for the importance of infant bap-
tism. He writes the following about infant baptism:

Had you any sense of these things, you would look upon the baptism of
your child as a rite of great importance and spiritual priority of its own;
for in either case, has the form any value beyond what it signifies. The
other class among you suffer the same defect; for it is my settled convic-
tion that no man ever objected to infant baptism, who had not at the
bottom of his objections, false views of Christian education—who did
not hold a notion of individualism, in regard to Christian character
in childhood, which is justified neither by observation or by Scripture,
(p. 53)

Bushnell, like Wesley, believed that Christian nurture and conversion began
with infant baptism. Like Wesley he also believed that the child became a
member of the covenant community and through the nurturing of Christian
parents the child was saved. Bushnell held to a covenantal theological per-
spective where children were viewed within the community, not as strangers.
Children are to be raised and taught by believing parents and participate in
the church community, and at a later age the child will confirm or reject his
or her baptism (Lawson, 2011, p. 161).3Both Wesley and Bushnell have a high
view of the role of the church community in faith formation and both hold
that salvation was communal. This was one of the reasons Bushnell disagreed
with the revivalist emphasis on individual conversion and salvation.

Christian Nurture and Conversion

One of the primary reasons Bushnell developed his thesis of Christian
nurture was to encourage parents to model Christian faith for their children.
He was writing to change the practice of Christian nurture as conceived and
practiced by the extreme Calvinists of his day. His thesis of organic connec­
M ADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 321

tion between Christian parents and their children as a means of conversion

was the heart of the controversy. Many Christian educators who have studied
Bushnell have advocated that he did not deny the supernatural work of con-
version in the life of the child, because he believed that the process of regen-
eration of children raised in a Christian home takes place by the power of the
Holy Spirit, as it does in any Christian conversion (Downs, 1983, p. 50). This
has also been developed more clearly by Lawrence Richards’ view of “faith as
life.” Richards (1970), following Bushnell, argues that “faith-as-life” was to be
communicated as in any other culture, through the process of socialization
(p. 47).
BushnelPs view of Christian nurture of the family was consistent with
Wesleys view of families as the domestic church which fosters faith develop-
ment. Wesley placed a strong emphasis on education, hard work, Christian
piety, and devotion, which took place in Christian families. The primary dif-
ference between BushnelPs and Wesley's views was Wesley’s belief of training
children up in the way they should go as a means to lead to salvation. He be-
lieved strongly that all children and adults are in need of redemption. His ex-
perience at Aldersgate shaped his view of conversion and evangelism. The
instantaneous transformation he experienced at Aldersgate resulted in Meth-
odism becoming a heartfelt religion. His preaching and evangelistic efforts
were centered on the transformational power of this experience.
Historically, the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition has gravitated to a focus on
the instantaneous work of salvation. However, more recently the tradition
views salvation as a gradual process or growth in grace. The rediscovery of the
Wesleyan themes of Christian formation by way of spiritual disciplines and
the means of grace has led many to diminish the Aldersgate conversion and
the importance of instantaneous conversion in Wesley s theology. As Henry
Knight (2001) states, “For John Wesley salvation was both instantaneous and
gradual” (p. 43).
Even though Wesley has a robust view of conversion and evangelism, he
also placed emphasis on the role infant baptism, Christian nurture and the
faith community played in socializing a child into a life of faith. This process
of socialization into a life of faith was similar to BushnelPs view of Christian
nurture. For example, Wesley believed that infant baptism and education
provides a means to cure the disease of sin. He was a strong advocate that
children be nurtured in the home and receives a Christian education. Also,
Wesley’s focus was on the engagement in the means of grace as practices that
form and transform persons into faithful disciples. He required Methodists to
be engaged in classes, societies, and bands (small groups) as a way to form
and transform persons into “holiness of heart and life.” It could be argued
that the means of grace provided socialization into the life of faith and that
over time a person was transformed or converted.
322 Christian Education Journal

Implications for Christian Education

The question still remains, does a child need to have a conversion experi-
ence to come to faith? Or are there situations in which a child, like my son
Nathan, can be nurtured into faith without a conversion experience? Accord-
ing to Horace Bushnell, a child who was baptized as an infant and nurtured in
a Christian context has an organic connection to faith, by the work of the Holy
Spirit. According to Bushnell, the child does not need to have a crisis of faith or
a conversion experience. According to John Wesley, a child who was baptized
as an infant becomes a member of the covenant community, and by preven-
ient grace the child was regenerated. When the child reaches the age of ac-
countability, he or she can either accept baptism through confirmation or re-
ject it. Wesley argues that a child, like adults who commit sin after their
baptism, needs to be saved. Salvation was by faith, and faith was a gift of God.
This was not primarily assent of belief, but a divine conviction of invisible
things, a spiritual sense. Also, a child can be formed and transformed in faith
through the processes of infant baptism, Christian nurture, and education of
Christian parents by participation in the means of grace. In this regard, a child
could come to faith through his or her parents and through the drawing of
God’s prevenient grace. A child can be saved without a conversion experience.
There are several implications of Bushnells and Wesley’s views of Chris-
tian nurture and conversion for Christian education today. First, the process of
childhood spirituality begins through baptism. The spiritual journey of chil-
dren begins when their parents or guardians, by faith, present their children to
be baptized to become members of the faith community. Both Wesley and
Bushnell would affirm that a child who was baptized becomes part of the
covenant community. These children are saved until they later either confirm
or reject their baptism. Second, congregations should give emphasis to provid-
ing resources for family to nurture faith in their children. Since families are the
“domestic church,” they model God before their children. How they express
love of God, love and service to each other, their neighbor, the church, and the
world shapes and forms children s faith. In this regard, both Wesley’s and
Bushnells emphases on Christian nurture are needed to enhance faithful dis-
cipleship of families. Third, congregations play a significant role in supple-
menting the Christian nurture of families through their programs and min-
istries. Families need to know they are not alone in the development and
formation of the faith of their children. Christian educational ministries for
children need to be creative, experiential, and include a focus on learning the
stories of Scripture. Also, congregations need to provide opportunities for
children to participate in the means of grace as avenues to foster their faith for-
mation. Educational ministries that provide opportunities for children to
know God, such as Scripture reading, worship, and service, are essential to a
child’s faith formation. Fourth, Christian educators are to emphasize Chris­
M ADDIX: Christian Nurture and Conversion 323

tian nurture for children as a means of nurturing them into the faith commu-
nity. Children can be nurtured into a life of faith based on their parent’s faith
and their faith community. This can also be true for children who come from
non-Christian families. The local congregation can become “surrogate” par-
ents to the child by providing Gods love and grace. This does not mean that
the conversion of children is not emphasized. Some Christian educators are
concerned about evangelizing children before the age of accountability. This is
not necessary if the child was being nurtured into faith by their parents or the
faith community. Congregations that practice infant baptism need to provide
confirmation for children who are baptized as infants. These classes should fo-
cus on helping children confirm their baptism and prepare them for the next
steps in their faith formation. Fifth, salvation is communal not individualistic.
Both Bushnell and Wesley agreed that salvation is communal. Wesley’s famous
phrase that there is no holiness without social holiness gives emphasis to the im-
portance of the faith being nurtured through social interaction.

Conclusion

The question of whether children should go through a conversion expe-

rience to become Christians was answered by both Horace Bushnell and John
Wesley. Both Bushnell and Wesley agreed that children can be socialized into
faith through their Christian parents and their faith community. This social-
ization into faith is a partnership among God, the family, and the Christian
community. Both Bushnell and Wesley believed that salvation is communal;
salvation was never to be individualistic in focus. They also agreed that chil-
dren enter the covenant community through baptism as the first step in their
spiritual journeys and then they either confirm or reject their baptism at con-
firmation. This socialization into the life of faith for Wesley was not inconsis-
tent with his view of conversion. For Wesley, conversion was necessary when
children sinned after their baptism; thus the new birth was necessary for sal-
vation. Bushnell’s and Wesley’s views of nurture and conversion were repre-
sentative of their theological and historical contexts. Hopefully Christian ed-
ucators who minister to children today can appropriate Bushnell and
Wesley s approach to Christian nurture as a means of socialization into the
faith community.

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AUTHOR
Mark A. Maddix, (Ph.D., Trinity Evangelical
Divinity School), serves as Professor o f Chris-
tian Education and Dean o f the School o f
Theology & Christian Ministries at Northwest
Nazarene University, in Nampa, ID. He serves
as President o f the North American Profes-
sors o f Christian Education (NAPCE). E-mail:
mamaddix@nnu.edu
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