e view that "Henry's disagreement with Rome was "merely a cynical excuse by which he could pave the way for a marital union with Anne Boleyn" (Heydt). In either case, since the English people were weary of being taken advantage of by the Catholic Church, they supported Henry's move, and in 1534 an Act of Parliament made him "the Supreme Head of the Church" (Trueman). Although the country remained officially Catholic, "the pope's power had been ended" (Trueman). Thus, England essentially had its own unique Reformation, while Europe's Reformation was led by Martin Luther's protests against the Church's corruption in 1517 instead (Cuizon). In England, the movement started at the top, with the king; in Europe, it started with the people. Martin Luther was not only a spokesperson but also the spiritual leader of the European Reformation, soon followed by others such as John Calvin and Ulrich Zwingli (Cuizon).
Distinctive Influences That Molded John Wesley
John Wesley was molded by events and circumstances that gave him greater insights into the Christian faith and helped to make him the spiritual leader that he became. His Oxford education and the influence of the Church of England were the traditional aspects that impacted his religious thinking, but just before 1725, he "fell among some Lutheran and Calvinist authors whose confused and undigested accounts magnified faith to such an amazing extent that it quite hid all the rest of the commandments" (Heitzenater 35). Wesley was confounded by their thinking, stating that he was "utterly lost, not being able to find out what the error was, nor yet to reconcile this uncouth hypothesis either with Scripture or common sense" (Heitzenrater 35). Focusing on pietists such as Thomas à Kempis, Wesley entered a new phase of understanding (Heitzenrater 35). He also took the advice of Jeremy Taylor, who suggested that "The first rule of holy living is care of your time" and began ...