What role did religious beliefs play in the antislavery movement?

Religious beliefs played an important role in the anit-slavery movement. The movement in England was founded by four evangelists, Charles Wesley, John Wesley, William Cowper, and John Newton. The first two were Methodists and the last two were Calvinists. In the United States, the Abolitionist movement was founded by Bishop Coke of the Methodist Church and George Washington, President of the United States.
In the United States, religious leaders and evangelists provided leadership for the movement as did their female relatives.