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Basic
Facts
The United
Methodist
Church is
the largest
of seventy
denominations
in
world-wide
Methodism,
including
such groups
as the
Salvation
Army, the
Pentecostal
Association,
the Wesleyan
and the
Nazarene
Churches. A
movement
begun in the
1700's in
England by
students at
Oxford
University,
it was
orginally
called "The
Holy Club".
Members
agreed to
attend their
own church
regularly
(they were
from a
variety of
groups,
Roman
Catholic as
well as
Protestant,
although
most were
Anglican or
the Church
of England),
pray and
read their
Bibles
daily, do a
good deed
for others
daily, and
attend their
Holy Club
group (or
"class")
weekly.
Other
students
made fun of
"Holy Club"
members,
considering
them
religious
fanatics;
among the
jibes they
made up was
"Methodist",
because the
Holy Club
insisted on
being so
methodical -
scheduling
daily prayer
and
Scripture
study, for
instance.
The name
stuck.
From the
beginning,
Methodists
did not
intend to
create a
separate
church.
Their vision
was to
encourage
all
Christians
to "grow in
holiness":
to grow
spiritually
and to put
that
spiritual
growth to
practical
purpose in
making a
better
world. To
this day,
Methodists
do not think
they are
part of the
only or best
church; we
believe that
all
Christians
are part of
one family
of God.
Our basic
tenets are
shared by
most
Christians:
one God,
revealed as
Father, Son,
and Holy
Spirit;
Jesus Christ
is the Son
of God, both
human and
divine; the
Bible
contains all
things
necessary
for
salvation.
We believe
that
becoming a
Christian is
not a matter
of simply
going
through a
ceremony or
believing a
certain set
of
doctrines;
rather we
enter a
relationship
through
faith with
God in
Christ, and
then open
ourselves
for a
lifelong
process of
growth in
that
relationship.
One may
compare it
to marriage:
what makes
us married
is not a
wedding
(although
that's
important)
or saying we
are in love,
but a
life-long
growing
commitment
to one
another,
grateful for
the gift of
love the
other person
entrusts to
us.
We practice
baptism in
three modes:
sprinkling,
pouring, and
total
immersion,
leaving it
to the
person to
decide which
he or she
wishes, and
we baptize
both
children and
adults. We
accept the
baptism of
other
Christian
churches and
practice
open
communion:
you need not
be a United
Methodist to
receive
eucharist
with us.
We believe
in "the
trained mind
and the
warmed
heart": that
is,
education is
important,
but with it
must go a
personal
commitment
to God. An
uneducated
commitment
can become
bigotry and
fanaticism;
an
uncommitted
education
can breed
immoral
monsters.
United
Methodism
has founded
over a
hundred
colleges and
universities,
has campus
ministries
at almost
every major
institution
of higher
education in
the nation,
and
elementary
and
secondary
schools on
Native
American
reservations,
in
Appalachia,
and in
mission
stations
abroad. We
have
missionaries
on every
continent
and have
created one
of the
largest
Protestant
networks of
hospitals,
childrens'
homes, and
retirement
homes in the
world.
We call
persons to
practice
responsible
stewardship:
of their
citizenship
by
participating
in
democratic
processes;
of their
world
through
ecological
awareness
and action;
of their
relationships
through
commitment
and caring;
of their
minds and
bodies
through,
among other
things,
practicing
total
abstinence
from
alcoholic
beverages,
tobacco, and
illegal
drugs.
The United
Methodist
Church has a
clear set of
stances on
almost every
political
issue, from
the right of
collective
bargaining
to abortion,
homosexuality
and racism.
These
stances are
articulated
by an
elected body
of
delegates,
half lay and
half clergy,
from all
over the
world, who
meet every
four years.
We refer to
these
"stances" as
our "Social
Principles."
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