Ryland Epworth Church is the product of three congregations. The first, Ryland Church, started in 1843 in Southwest Washington. It was called Ryland Chapel initially, in honor of  Rev. William Ryland, former Chaplain of the United States Senate,  who had contributed the land for  its construction.  In 1940, that congregation purchased land in Southeast Washington and erected the present neo-Gothic sanctuary, with distinctive stained glass windows, in 1944. An Education Building was erected in the 1950s and the mortgage burning ceremony for that building was held on May 28, 1967. Ryland Epworth's location has prompted some people to describe the building as the church where the city and the suburbs meet.

Rev. Forrest P. Reynolds, who was appointed pastor of Ryland Church in 1965, accepted the first Black member, Mrs. Gertrude Boone. In 1973, Rev. Reynolds oversaw the merger of Ryland with Epworth Church, founded in 1882, to form the Ryland Epworth United Methodist Church. Four years later, when the 133 year-old Anacostia United Methodist Church closed, many persons from the Anacostia Church joined the Ryland Epworth congregation. Other black families joined under Rev. Andrew Meeder, who pastored the church from 1978-1989.

In 1989, Rev. Roland Timity of Sierra Leone became the first person of color to serve as pastor. He was followed by Rev. Bruce Haskins, who served two years (1992-1994), and Rev. Obie Wright, who pastored nine years (1994-2003). Arthuree McLaughlin Wright was ordained as Deacon in Full Connection during the 1999 Annual Conference of the Baltimore Washington Conference.  The Bishop authorized her secondary appointment as Deacon at Ryland Epworth in July 1999, and she served in that capacity until June 2003. The Reverend Arlester Brown served as interim pastor in July and August 2003.  Bishop Felton E. May appointed Rev. Gladman Kapfumvuti of Zimbabwe as pastor in September 2003.

Ryland Epworth Church continues to include people of various nationalities and ethnic backgrounds. The mission is to be a transethnic, grace-rich environment in which Christians grow toward maturity in Christ by proclaiming Him as Savior and Lord in our personal and corporate lives through worship, fellowship, education, evangelism, and outreach. This enables us to serve the churched and the unchurched and demonstrate our unity in the Spirit to our city, our nation, and our world.