| Part of a series on Methodism | |
 |  |
| John Wesley | George Whitefield |
Background | Doctrinal distinctives |
People | Largest groups |
Related movements | Christianity Portal |
The Methodist Church of Great Britain or British Methodist Church is the largest Wesleyan / Methodist body in the United Kingdom, with congregations across Great Britain (although more limited in Scotland). Methodism is a movement within Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations John Wesley (ˈwɛslɪ ( – March 2, 1791) was an Anglican cleric and Christian theologian who was the founder of the (Evangelical Early life He was born at the Bell Inn Southgate Street Gloucester, England. Christianity ( Greek Χριστιανισμός from the word Xριστός ( Christ)is a monotheistic Religion centered on the life and teachings Protestantism refers to the forms of Christian faith and practice that originated in the 16th century Protestant Reformation. Pietism was a movement within Lutheranism, lasting from the late 17th century to the mid-18th century and later Anglicanism is a tradition of Christian faith Churches in this tradition either have historical connections to the Church of England or have similar beliefs Arminianism is a school of soteriological thought within Protestant Christianity based on the theological ideas of the Dutch Wesleyanism or Wesleyan Theology is the system of Christian theology of Methodism taught by John Wesley. Calvinism (sometimes called the Reformed tradition, the Reformed faith, or Reformed theology) is a theological system and an approach to the The Articles of Religion are an official doctrinal statement of American Methodism. Prevenient grace is a Christian theological concept rooted in Augustinian theology and embraced primarily by Arminian Christians who are influenced by the The governmental view of the Atonement (also known as the moral government theory) is a doctrine in Christian theology concerning the meaning and effect Imparted righteousness, in Methodist Theology, is that gracious gift of God given at the moment of the new birth which enables a Christian Christian Perfection is a Christian doctrine which maintains that after conversion but before death a Christian's soul may be cleansed from the stain of Original sin Richard Allen ( February 14 1760 - March 26 1831) was an African American pastor and the founder of the African Methodist Episcopal Francis Asbury ( August 20 1745 &ndash March 31 1816) was one of the first two bishops of the Methodist Episcopal Church in the Thomas Coke ( September 9, 1747 &ndash May 2, 1814) was the first Methodist Bishop and is known as the Father of Methodist Missions Albert Cook Outler ( November 17, 1908 &ndash September 1, 1989) was a 20th century American James Varick was the first Bishop of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. Biography Charles Wesley was the son of Susanna Wesley and Samuel Wesley. The World Methodist Council, founded in 1881, is an association of churches in the Methodist tradition which comprises most of the world's Wesleyan denominations The United Methodist Church is the largest Methodist denomination and the second largest Protestant denomination in the United States. The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the " AME Church " is a Christian denomination founded by Bishop Richard Allen in Philadelphia The African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, or AME Zion Church, was officially formed in 1821 but operated for a number years before then The Church of the Nazarene, often referred to as the Nazarene Church is an International evangelical Christian denomination that began in The Christian Methodist Epsicopal Church is a historically black denomination within the broader context of Methodism. The Uniting Church in Australia ( UCA) was formed on June 22 1977 when many congregations of the Methodist Church of Australasia, This page is about the Moravian Church globally For information about the church in a particular geographic area use the links at Organisation below The Holiness movement in Christianity is composed of people who believe and propagate the belief that the carnal nature of humanity can be cleansed through Faith The Salvation Army is a Christian charity and church that is internally organised like a military service. Personalism is the school of thought that consists of three main principles and which can broadly be qualified as species of Humanism: Only persons are real (in Pentecostalism is a renewalist religious movement within Christianity that places special emphasis on the direct personal experience of God through the Baptism John Wesley (ˈwɛslɪ ( – March 2, 1791) was an Anglican cleric and Christian theologian who was the founder of the (Evangelical Methodism is a movement within Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom, the UK or Britain,is a Sovereign state located See also Kingdom of Great Britain Great Britain (Breatainn Mhòr Prydain Fawr Breten Veur Graet Breetain is the larger of the two main islands Scotland ( Gaelic: Alba) is a Country in northwest Europethat occupies the northern third of the island of Great Britain. It is the United Kingdom's fourth largest Christian denomination, with around 330,000 members and 6,000 churches. Denominationalism|List of Christian denominations|Church (disambiguation A Christian denomination is an identifiable religious body under a common name structure and doctrine within Congregations in the Channel Islands, the Isle of Man, Malta and Gibraltar also form part of the British Methodist Church. The Channel Islands ( Norman: Îles d'la Manche, French: Îles Anglo-Normandes or Îles de la Manche) are a group of Islands The Isle of Man (Ellan Vannin ˈɛlʲən ˈvanɪn or Mann (Mannin) is a self-governing Crown dependency, located in the Irish Sea at the geographical Malta, officially the Republic of Malta (Repubblika ta' Malta is a European Microstate, comprising an Archipelago of three islands Gibraltar (dʒɨˈbrɒltər is a British overseas territory located near the southernmost tip of the Iberian Peninsula overlooking the Strait of Gibraltar
Contents |
History
Methodism arose as a revival movement within the Church of England in the 18th century and was organised by the Church of England clergyman, John Wesley. Methodism is a movement within Protestant Christianity represented by a number of denominations and organizations The Church of England is the officially established Christian church in England, the Mother Church of the worldwide Anglican The 18th century lasted from 1701 to 1800 in the Gregorian calendar, in accordance with the Anno Domini / Common Era numbering system John Wesley (ˈwɛslɪ ( – March 2, 1791) was an Anglican cleric and Christian theologian who was the founder of the (Evangelical As Wesley and his colleagues preached around the country they formed local societies, that were given national organisation through Wesley's leadership and conferences of preachers. Wesley insisted that Methodists regularly attend their local parish church as well as Methodist meetings. Although Wesley declared, "I live and die a member of the Church of England", the impact of the movement, especially after Wesley's clandestine ordinations in 1784, made separation from the Church of England virtually inevitable. In 1784 Wesley made provision for the governance of Methodism after his death through the 'Yearly Conference of the People called Methodists'. He nominated 100 people and declared them to be its members and laid down the method by which their successors were to be appointed.
For half a century after the death of John Wesley (1791), the Methodist movement was characterised by a series of divisions, normally on matters of church government (e. g. Methodist New Connexion) and separate revivals (e. Methodist New Connexion was a Protestant Nonconformist church, also known as the Kilhamite Methodists. g. Primitive Methodism in Staffordshire, 1811, and the Bible Christian Movement in south-west England, 1815). Primitive Methodism was a major movement in English Methodism from about 1810 until the Methodist Union in 1932. The Bible Christian Church was a Methodist church It was founded by William O’Bryan, a Wesleyan Methodist local preacher, on 1815-10-18 in The second half of the nineteenth century saw many of the small schisms reunited to become the United Methodist Free Churches and a further union in 1907 with the Methodist New Connexion and Bible Christian Church brought the United Methodist Church into being. United Methodist Free Churches was an English nonconformist community which merged into the United Methodist Church in 1907 Finally the Methodist Union of 1932 the three main Methodist groups in Britain, the Wesleyans, Primitive Methodists and United Methodists came together to form the present Methodist Church. For English Methodists Methodist Union refers to the joining together in 1932 of several of the larger groups of English Methodists The Wesleyan Church is an Evangelical Christian Religious denomination in the United States Canada and Australia associated with the Holiness Primitive Methodism was a major movement in English Methodism from about 1810 until the Methodist Union in 1932.
Organisation
The Methodist Church has been characterised by a strong central organization, the Connexion, which holds an annual Conference. Connexion is the original and variant spelling of " Connection " common until at least the 18th century, and still used in Britain The annual conference is held in three sessions (for ministers, the diaconate and a representative session including lay representatives). In Christian churches, a minister is someone who is authorized by a church or religious organization to perform clergy functions such as teaching of beliefs Deacon is a role in the Christian Church that is generally associated with service of some kind but which varies among theological and denominational traditions In religious organizations the laity comprises all persons who are not Clergy. It is presided over by a President (a minister, elected by Conference for a year) and a Vice-President (a lay person or deacon).
The connexion is divided into over 600 circuits governed by the (usually) twice yearly Circuit Meeting and led and administrated principally by a "superintendent minister". Ministers are appointed to these rather than to individual churches (though some large inner-city churches, known as Central Halls, are designated as circuits in themselves - Westminster Central Hall in central London being the best known). Methodist Central Hall Westminster is on Victoria Street in London, just off Parliament Square, next to the Queen Elizabeth II Conference Most circuits have many fewer ministers than churches, and the majority of services are led by lay local preachers, or by supernumerary ministers ie ministers who have retired and called supernumerary because they are not counted for official purposes in the numbers of ministers for the circuit in which they are listed. A Methodist local preacher is a lay person who has been accredited by a Methodist church to lead worship on a regular basis Supernumerary is an additional member of an organization A supernumerary is also non-regular member of a staff a member of the staff or an employee who works in a public office who The superintendent and other ministers are assisted in the leadership and administration of the Circuit by lay Circuit Stewards, who collectively with the ministers form what is normally known as the Circuit Leadership Team.
The circuits are grouped in thirty-two districts covering Great Britain, the Isle of Man and the Channel Islands each supervised by a District Synod and a District Chair, except the new London District, created in September 2006, which has three chairs with a "Lead" chair.
There are over 5,900 churches, around 630 Circuits in 32 Districts in Great Britain. Northern Ireland is part of the Methodist Church in Ireland. The Methodist Church in Ireland has approximately 80000 members across both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland.
Unlike many other Methodist churches, the British church does not have bishops. A report, "What Sort of Bishops?", to the Conference of 2005, was accepted for study and report. This report considered if this should now be changed, and if so, what forms of episcopacy might be acceptable. Consultation at grassroots level during 2006 and 2007 revealed overwhelming opposition from those who responded. As a consequence, the 2007 Conference decided not to move towards having bishops at present. Many Methodists believe that the function of 'bishop' is already part of the church's structures - though called by different names.
The Church is closely associated with the NCH (formerly National Children's Homes), Methodist Relief & Development Fund (MRDF) and Methodist Homes charities. The Methodist Relief and Development Fund ( MRDF) is an independent charity rooted in the Methodist Church in Britain. The definition of charitable organization, and of charity varies according to the country and in some instances the region of the country in which the charitable organization operates The Methodist Church also helps to run a number of schools, including two leading Public Schools in East Anglia, Culford School and The Leys. The Leys School is a co-educational British public school (privately funded and independent)—it is a boarding and day school for over 520 pupils It helps to promote an all round education with a strong Christian ethos.
Ecumenical relations
In the 1960s, the Methodist Church made ecumenical overtures to the Church of England, aimed at church unity. The 1960s decade refers to the years from the beginning of 1960 to the end of 1969 Ecumenism (also oecumenism, œcumenism) refers to initiatives aimed at greater Religious unity or cooperation Formally, these failed when they were rejected by the Church of England's General Synod in 1972, however conversations and co-operation continued leading in 2003 to the signing of a covenant between the two churches. The General Synod is the title of the governing body of some church organizations From the 1970s onward, the Methodist Church also started several "Local Ecumenical Projects" (LEPs) both with the Church of England and with the United Reformed Church, which involved sharing churches, schools and in some cases ministers. This article is about the Decade 1970-1979 For the Year 1970 see 1970. An unrelated American church of similar name is the United Reformed Churches in North America.
The Methodist Church is a member of Churches Together in Britain and Ireland, the Conference of European Churches and the World Council of Churches. Churches Together in Britain and Ireland ( CTBI) is an Ecumenical organisation The Conference of European Churches (CEC was founded in 1959 to promote reconciliation dialogue and friendship between the churches of Europe at a time of growing Cold War The World Council of Churches ( WCC) is an international
The Methodist Church was part of the "Scottish Churches Initiative for Union" (SCIFU) which stalled following the withdrawal of the Church of Scotland in 2003. The Church of Scotland (Eaglais na h-Alba known informally by its Scots language name The Kirk, is the National church of Scotland. St. Andrew's Scots Church, Malta is a joint congregation (LEP) of the Methodist Church and the Church of Scotland situated in Valletta. St Andrew's Scots Church Malta is a joint congregation (a "Local Ecumenical Partnership" of the Church of Scotland and the Methodist Church of Great Britain Valletta ( Belt Valletta or Città Umilissima) is the capital city of Malta. The Methodist Church also participates in the Livingston Ecumenical Parish in Scotland. Livingston is the fourth post-war New town to be built in Scotland, designated in 1962
Methodist Recorder
The Methodist Recorder is an independent weekly newspaper of this title examines events and current affairs within the Methodist community in Great Britain and the Wider World. The Methodist Recorder is available on tape free of charge for blind and visually impaired people from Galloway's Society for the Blind. Galloway's Society for the Blind (reg charity number 562088 is one of Lancashire 's oldest charities, established in 1867 following a public meeting
Work with young people
The Methodist Church has approximately 30,000 members under 25 years old, and some Methodist churches work with young people in their communities. Work with young people is overseen by MAYC. Once a year, young people have a chance to meet and discuss church issues at Methodist Youth Conference. There is also a biannual event called "Breakout" which evolved from the London Weekend.
Methodist associations
Although not part of the official structures of the Methodist Church, there are a number of fellowships and societies for Methodist interests. One of these is the Wesley Historical Society whose branches hold regular meetings and publish journals recording the history of Methodism. These are useful sources of information.
Methodist Evangelicals Together
Methodist Evangelicals Together is the recently (2007) adopted name for Headway, an association of evangelically minded Methodists. Headway was formed about 20 years ago when the Methodist Revival Fellowship and Conservative Evangelicals in Methodism merged. The journal, MET Connexions, has articles covering a wide range of topics. An archive of articles is available.
Notes
- ^ What sort of bishops?:Models of episcopacy and British Methodism
- ^ MET-Connexions magazine Editorial
References
External links
- The Methodist Church of Great Britain
- The Methodist Diaconal Order
- Methodist Heritage
- Structure of the Methodist Church (pdf format)
- Anglican-Methodist Covenant
- Methodist Church Fund for Home Mission
- Methodist Church Fund for Property
- Methodist Church Fund for World Mission
- Methodist Recorder newspaper
- Methodist Evangelicals Together (formerly Headway)
Dapyx Software network: MP3 Explorer | Ebook Manager | Zenithic