Holiness, social justice and the mission of the Church: John Wesley’s insights in contemporary context

John Wesley summarised Methodism’s mission as spreading ‘scriptural holiness’. This article argues that the praxis of social justice as an expression of holiness is integral to the mission of the Church. The following themes from Wesley’s theology are examined: holiness as love; ‘justice, mercy, and truth’; social holiness; works of mercy as a means of grace; stewardship, and ‘the outcasts of men’. It argues that the praxis of justice, mercy and truth is integral to holiness and hence to mission of the Church. A contextualisation of this theme in the context of secularisation and migration is then developed.