What major beliefs distinguish United Methodists from other Denominations?

There are three ways to answer this - all of which are consistent with John Wesley's intentions for the Methodist movement. First, Wesely would caution against any beliefs which "distinguish" us from other Christians. In fact he did so in one of the earliest Methodist documents, The Character of a Methodist. In it, he specifically warned against any beliefs which separate one believer from another, and urged the people called Methodist to be much more concerned about community than separation.

Second, Wesley would call us to affirm the historic creeds of the Christian faith, both as a way of pointing to central beliefs of christianity and also as a way of further showing our unity with other orthodox Christians. Wesley maintained that these historic confessions were sufficient to define the essence of Methodism and to provide the basis for ecumenical relations.

Third, Wesley would remind us that God has raised us up in the midst of the larger Christian world to emphasize some things - most notably, scriptural Christianity, the Lordship of Christ, the witness of the Spirit (Christian assurance) and holiness of heart and life ( Christian perfection). He felt some branches of 18th century christianity had ignored such beliefs and that early Methodism was born of God to revive them. It is only in these ways, held together, that we can properly speak of distinguishing beliefs.