Splits and Mergers: How we got to where we are

 Ascension Day

Lectionary Texts:

Acts 1:1-11

Ephesians 1:20-23

Thanks to Danny for his comment. Sorry we won't be at the wedding, but congrats to Anna.

Today is the Festival of the Ascension, 40 days after Easter. The lectionary text from Acts 1 tells this story. The Ascension is also mentioned in the Gospels of Luke and John, as well as in Ephesians 4. It is attested in both the Nicene and the Apostles' Creeds. Of course it, like most of the other Biblical beliefs attested in the historical creeds but troublesome to rationalists, is not mentioned in the Canadian Creed. 

I want to close out our series on the beginnings of Methodism with a brief look at the last two hundred years. Wesley knew that Methodism was surely going to split from the Anglican Church an become a separate denomination in England just as it had in America. The British Methodist Church was founded soon after Wesley's death and remains to this day, though small and not growing, less than 500,000 members.

Francis Asbury died in 1816. He struggled mightily and used his authoritarian status against the majority of his ministers. He required them all to be single through their entire ministry. William McKendree, a Methodist Minister from Nashville, Tennessee, defied Asbury and married. The issue was not resolved before Asbury's death. After Asbury died, McKendree was elected bishop. Ministers could and did marry. 

McKendree UMC is a now a major United Methodist Church in Nashville.

 

In 1832 the Methodist Protestant Church split from the Methodist Episcopal Church over polity. The M.P. Church adopted Congregational (no bishops) polity . Slavery was the big issue in the following years. In 1843, the Wesleyan Church separated from the Methodist Episcopal Church over slavery. The Wesleyan Church was abolitionist. In 1844 was the big split--North and South, anti-slavery and pro-slavery. The Northern Church remained the Methodist Episcopal Church. The Southern Church became the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. The outcome of the Civil War did not resolve the split.

 

Three African-American denominations arose during these years, The African Methodist Episcopal Church (A.M.E.) in 1816, The African Methoedist Episcopal Church Zion (A.M.E. Zion) in 1821, and the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church (C.M.E.) in 1872. The C.M.E. Church changed its name to Christian Episcopal Church in the 1950's, keeping the abbreviation.

1939 was the year of the big merger. The Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church South and the Methodist Protestant Church merged to form the Methodist Church.

In 1968 the Methodist Church merged with the much smaller Evangelical United Brethren Church (E.U.B.) to form the United Methodist Church. The E.U.B.'s were founded as a German speaking church by Phillip Otterbein, who was a good friend of John Wesley. All the other Methodist Churches regard John Wesley as their founder.

Next year will likely bring us another split and a new denomination, perhaps to be named the Wesleyan Covenant Church. It will be opposed to all L.G.B.T. concerns.

God of all Methodists and all peoples,

Rich as all our traditions are, should we pray for the eventual restoration of all Christians to one holy  apostolic church? Amen

Faithfully,

Christian