growing feeling in favour of union. Canada and Australasia led the way, for in these countries the Methodist Church was undivided, and the sentiment was reatly strengthened by the formation in the United Kin dom of the United Methodist C urch in 1907. See A New glistary of Methodism, ed. W. J. Townsend, H. B. local and travelling preachers, and the organization of local societies with class leaders, stewards and trustees. The intention was to make American Methodism a facsimile of that in England, subject to Wesley and the British Conference-a society and not W0rk111a11, George EQYFS (2 V015-, L011d011, 1909)- U- A- V-) a Church. Pilmoor and others objected to Asbury's strict Church Omcers
La Sunday Sunday Churches
Denomination' Mimstem Preacliiers. Ili, /£?, ig,1;J§ I;1;, i1§ Schools. ' Te;?1i, , S Scholars. &c. Wesleyan Methodists:-
Great Britain. . . . 2,454 19,826 520,868 7,589 132,186 937,953 8,6061 Ireland ... 246 621 29,531 353 2,557 25,969 4142 Foreign Missions . . 6I7 4,965 143,467 1,754 7,651 91,113 3,502 French Conference . . . 35 89 1,575 70° 142 1,996 127 South African Conference 253 5,797 117,146 788 2,893 39,329 3,930 Primitive Methodists ..... 1,178 16,158 212,168 4,155 59,557 465,531 5,148 United Methodist Church . . 891 6,183 186,905 2,404 43,169 323,675 3,188 Wesleyan Reform Union .... 21 527 8,489 181 2,762 22,312 196 Independent Methodist Churches . 424 - 9,442 153 3,041 27,219 156 Australasian Methodist Church . . 975 4,576 150,751 3,973 24,322 231,553 6,418 United States:-
Methodist Episcopal* .... 19,421 14,743 3,376,888 341619 361,667 3,068,248 29,765 Union American Methodist Episcopal, 138 - 1 8,500 - ~ - 255 African Methodist Episcopal 6,070 15,885 850,000 - - - 6,815 African Union Methodist Protestant 200 750 4,000 350 900 2,770 125 African Methodist Episcopal Zion. 3,912 1,520 578,310 ' 2,034 12,404 122,467 3,241 Methodist Protestant .... 1,551 1,135 183,894 2,034 1,680 126,031 2,242 Wesleyan Methodist . . . . 524 - 191064 465 - 13,344 598 Methodist Episco al (South) . 6,978 4,800 1,673,892 14,892 111,137 1,084,238 15,496 Congregational Miéthodist . . 415 - 24,000 - - - 425 Congregational Methodist (coloured) 5 ' ~ 319 - - - 5 New Congregational Methodist . 238 - 4,022 - - — 417 Zion Union Apostolic .... 30 - 2,346 - - - 32 Coloured Methodist Episcopal 2,673 2,786 219,739 4,007 7,098 79,876 2,619 Primitive Methodist .... 72 138 7,013 IOS - 11,754 104 Free Methodist ...... 1,126 1,299 51,435 1,175 7,376 40,560 1,117 Independent Methodist 8 - 2,569 "' r- -" I5 Evangelistic Missionary . 92 27 5,014 "- °- 1,200 47 Canadian Methodist Church. . 2,384 3,809 329,904 3,556 35.323 305,649 3,789 japan Methodist Churchs . 47 35 4,083 121 544 11,136 28 Totals . 52,973 105.669 8,715,434 84,731 833,409 7,089,023 93-320 Mrxrnonrsm IN me Umrnn STATES
There are in the United States sixteen distinct Methodist denominations, all agreeing essentially in doctrine. John Wesley had been conducting his United Societies for more than twenty years before the movement took root in North America. A.-Episcopal Methodist Churches.
Philip Embury (1729-1775), a Wesleyan local preacher, emigrated in 1760 from Limerick to New York. Robert Strawbridge (P-1781), a local preacher and native of Ireland, settled in Maryland. In 1766 Embury was stimulated by his relative, Mrs Barbara Heck, to begin Methodist preaching, and a society was soon formed, which grew rapidly. Embury was reinforced by the arrival of Thomas Webb (1724"'I7Q6), an English local preacher and a captain in the British army. Webb and Thomas Taylor, a layman of superior ability, appealed to Wesley to send over missionaries, and the 26th annual British Conference, held in 1768, sent to the society in New York, E 50 and furnished passage money for two missionaries, Richard Boardman and Joseph Pilmoor (17 3Q"182 5). Three years later Francis Asbury was sent over, and was made assistant superintendent. Meanwhile Strawbridge had been preaching with success in Maryland and in Virginia.
These “ advance agents ” of this spiritual propaganda brought with them Wesley's Arrninian Theology. They brought also “ the means of grace ” on which Wesley placed the greatest stress; such as personal testimony in private and public, class and prayer meetings, watch-nights, love-feasts, the direct and fervent preaching of the Gospel and the singing of Wesleyan hymns, carried on by means of circuits and stations, exporters, 1 Seating accommodation, 2,374,425.
Other preaching-places, 1561. ' Sunday and Thursday Schools. Methodism is also represented in several European countries by Conferences and Missions aliiliated to the Methodist Episcopal Church of America, and their membership is included in the figures given discipline, and Wesley, hearing of the disagreement, in 1773 appointed Thomas Rankin (c. 1738-1810) superintendent of the entire work of Methodism in America.
The First American Conference.-The first American Conference was held in 1773, and consisted of ten preachers, all of whom were born in England or Ireland. Asbury came to America to remain permanently; but Rankin, unable to identify himself with its people, to take the test oaths required in the Revolution, or to sympathize with the colonies, returned to England, as did all the English preachers except Asbury. By May 1776 there were 24 preachers and 4921 members; but in the first year of the Revolution there was a loss of 7 preachers and nearly 1000 members. The next year saw extensive revivals, in sections removed from the seat of war, which added more than 2600 to the number of members.
The preachers in the South determined upon administration of the sacraments, and a committee was chosen whose members ordained themselves and others. The Northern preachers opposed this step and for several years the Connexion was on the verge of disruption. An agreement was finally made to suspend the administration until Wesley's desires and judgment could be ascertained. He perceived that the society would disintegrate unless effective measures were speedily taken, and, aided by two presbyters of the Church of England, early in 1784 he ordained Thomas Coke (1747-1814), already a presbyter of that Church, as superintendent. He likewise ordained two of his lay preachers as deacons and elders, to accompany Coke, whom Wesley sent to America as his commissioner to establish, for the Methodist Society, a system of Church government, which should include the administration of Baptism and of the Lord's Supper. Coke above. The 1908 returns are: Bulgaria, 546 members; Denmark, g?7I; Finland and St Petersburg, 1367; France, 221; Italy, 3669; orth Germany, 12,886; Norway, 60545 South Germany, 11,808; Sweden, 15,4&0; Switzerland, 9419.
Western inference only.