Erasmus of Arcadia


Erasmus of Arcadia, also known as Gerasimos Avlonites, was a Greek Orthodox bishop of the Diocese of Arcadia in Crete, operating under the Metropolitan of Smyrna. Erasmus' monastery, located south of Rethymon in central Crete, was a centre of resistance to foreign domination by the Turkish régime. As such, the bishop was driven into exile around 1739. He is regarded as the founder of the first Greek Orthodox congregation in Amsterdam.
In 1763, the Greek bishop, who was visiting London at the time, consecrated John Wesley a bishop, and ordained several Methodist lay preachers as priests, including John Jones and Thomas Bryant. However, Wesley could not openly announce his episcopal consecration without incurring the penalty of the Præmunire Act. In light of Wesley's episcopal consecration by Erasmus, the Methodist Church can lay a claim on apostolic succession, as understood in the traditional sense, since John Wesley ordained and sent forth every Methodist preacher in his day, who preached and baptized and ordained, and since every Methodist preacher who has ever been ordained as a Methodist was ordained in this direct "succession" from Erasmus. Nevertheless, there are some individuals who dispute Wesley's consecration by Erasmus or condemned it, most notably Augustus Toplady. According to The Greek Orthodox Theological Review, Bishop Erasmus of the Diocese of Aracadia also ordained other famous clergymen, including Samson Staniforth, Thomas Bryant, Alexander Mather, among other men, as presbyters: The eastern prelate was also well respected in London, by men who had known Erasmus in the Ottoman Empire. Greek Orthodox Christians in Amsterdam attribute Erasmus with establishing Orthodoxy there.