What led to the formation of the United Methodist Church?

The United Methodist Church was born on April 23, 1968, through the union of two denominations: the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church (EUB). This merger brought together two traditions that shared deep roots in the Wesleyan and Pietist movements of the eighteenth century.

The Methodist Church

The Methodist Church itself was the product of a 1939 reunion that brought together three previously separated bodies: the Methodist Episcopal Church, the Methodist Episcopal Church South, and the Methodist Protestant Church. The division between North and South had occurred in 1844 over the issue of slavery, and the nearly century-long separation reflected the deep wounds of that conflict. The 1939 reunion was a significant step toward healing, though it also included the creation of a racially segregated Central Jurisdiction—a painful compromise that would not be fully dissolved until 1968.

The Evangelical United Brethren Church

The EUB Church was itself the result of a 1946 merger between the Church of the United Brethren in Christ and the Evangelical Church. Both denominations had roots in the German-speaking revival movements of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries in America. Philip William Otterbein and Martin Boehm founded the United Brethren, while Jacob Albright established the Evangelical Association. Like Methodism, both movements emphasized personal conversion, holy living, and mission.

The Merger

The union of the Methodist Church and the EUB Church in 1968 was the culmination of years of dialogue and negotiation. It also coincided with the abolition of the Central Jurisdiction, fulfilling a long-delayed commitment to racial inclusiveness. The new denomination—the United Methodist Church—adopted a new constitution, a revised Book of Discipline, and a distinctive cross-and-flame insignia that symbolized the union of the two traditions.

Significance

The formation of the United Methodist Church created one of the largest Protestant denominations in the world, with a presence in every U.S. state and more than 130 countries. It brought together complementary strengths—the Methodists' scale and institutional infrastructure and the EUB's intimate, community-oriented traditions—into a church committed to worship, witness, and service on a global scale.