Two Michigan UM clergy invite clergy and laity, age 40 and under, and clergy serving less than 10 years to join them on a Wesleyan Heritage Tour next April in the UK. Deadline to register is September 30.
REV. ELIZABETH HURD
REV. RUTH IRISH-VANDERSANDE
Elders, Michigan Conference
In eighteenth-century England, a group of college students at Oxford began a Holy Club. These young men would meet to pray, read scripture, take communion, and visit the sick and the poor in town. Their regimented religious practice soon earned them the nickname “Methodists.” One of these men was a young Anglican priest, John Wesley. Another, his brother, Charles. Such practice of faith was inspired by their mother, Susanna, who often bucked tradition in order to teach people about God.
Over the next decades, these men would challenge the Church of England to break free of institutional malaise and reach new people in new ways. Meeting houses opened up across England, the first in Bristol. Methodist preachers viewed the world as their parish and would take to town squares, fields, and even gravestones to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Many people these early Methodists reached were not regular churchgoers. They were reaching people the church was missing.
It is one thing to read about our Methodist history in textbooks or hear about it preached from the pulpit. It is another to experience it in person, seeing places from the Wesleys’ lives. Wesleyan heritage tours provide Methodists with a chance to connect with our history in a tangible way. In April 2026, two young clergywomen from the Michigan Conference, Rev. Elizabeth Hurd and Rev. Ruth Irish-VanderSande, will be leading a Wesleyan Heritage Tour through Educational Opportunities Tours, specifically aimed at clergy and laity, age 40 and under, and clergy who have been serving under appointment for less than 10 years.
While Bishop David Bard is offering a Wesleyan Heritage Tour in the Fall of 2026, along with the Iowa and Illinois Great Rivers Conferences, this spring trip has a specific purpose of equipping and inspiring young/new clergy and laity for the work of ministry. Devotionals, conversations, and tours will have a bent toward how we can harness the spirit of the early Methodist movement and infuse it into our own contexts and ministries.
Trip Overview
On this tour, travelers will be able to visit places significant to Methodist history: Epworth, where John and Charles were raised; Oxford, where the Wesleys went to school and were a part of the Holy Club; Bristol, where Charles lived and where the New Room, the oldest Methodist building in the world, is located; and Wesley’s Chapel in London.
Travelers will also visit other areas of significance to British history, including Coventry Cathedral, where the tragic history of World War II bombings meets the perseverance of modern humanity; Stratford-upon-Avon, where England’s most famous playwright, Shakespeare, grew up; and Bath, where Roman influence is still on display. Travelers will also have the option to extend their trip into Ireland, visiting places such as Cork, the Ring of Kerry, and Dublin. View the full itinerary for the April 2026 tour.
Personal Testimony
Rev. Elizabeth Hurd: I went on a Wesleyan Heritage Tour in 2023. It was incredible. I had learned about our Methodist history in seminary, but it wasn’t until I stood in Christ Church Cathedral in Oxford, seeing the place where the Wesleys were ordained, that it hit me. John and Charles were young clergymen. They noticed that the Church of England was failing to reach people for Christ, and they wanted to do something about it. Realizing this was inspiring.
I think our young/new clergy and young laity wonder what they can do to shake the church out of its institutional stupor. What will it take for the church to wake up and acknowledge its future? The Wesleys and other early Methodists didn’t wait for the church to wake up and give them permission to do ministry. They just did the ministry God was calling them to. And it reached people. I want to do this trip with young people and new clergy for this reason. I was inspired, walking in the footsteps of the Wesleys. My hope is that other young clergy and laity will participate in this trip, be inspired by our history, and dream up ways we can just go out and be the church the world needs us to be.
Rev. Ruth Irish-VanderSande: We have a rich history in the Methodist tradition, a history that has led to generations of transformation and faith formation in Christ. Our history tells us the stories of a heart strangely warmed at Aldersgate, of the power of Christ to transform a community desperate for change, of a couple of young clergypersons with hearts burning for Christ, for institutional change, and personal revival. These stories can be lost in the needs and demands of the church of the moment. Yet, they offer a glimpse into the lives of people yearning for Christ’s transformative power, much like our own.
This trip serves as an opportunity to learn more about the stories behind the Methodist movement. We are offering a chance for those who are younger in their lives or in their ministries to experience the vibrant traditions we have inherited in a new way. We will get to share our stories and our places in this tradition, together. In that sharing, we can express our hopes and desires for the church. Inspiration can be found in walking where the fires of change burned down the expectations laid out for those who could only dream of a church where they belonged. Who knows, we may even sow the seeds of change for the generations that are yet to come.
Payment Options
We don’t want the cost of the trip to be a barrier for anyone. This is why we are advertising it early, to give travelers a chance to save up some money. Clergypeople who are traveling on a Wesleyan Heritage Tour with Educational Opportunities (EO) Tours for the first time are eligible for a $500 scholarship through EO. If you are commissioned or a licensed local pastor, reach out to Ann Emerson, our Conference’s Educational Opportunities Coordinator by email at [email protected].
Furthermore, clergypeople can apply for a continuing education grant through the Board of Ordained Ministry. They will grant up to $750 for continuing education opportunities. Clergypeople can also use their continuing education funds through their churches to help fund this trip.
Laity who wish to participate in this trip and require financial assistance can apply for a $1,250 scholarship through the Board of Young People’s Ministries. There are six scholarships of this type available. Please complete this application and then submit it to Rev. Paul Reissmann, chair, at [email protected].
Registration
To register under Elizabeth Hurd, use Tour Host number 62575.
To register under Ruth VanderSande, use Tour Host number 62591.
We are asking for travelers to sign up by September 30, 2025.
Last Updated on July 16, 2025