While this work takes proper notice of its origins in John Wesley's 18th-century movement in England, it is primarily concerned with the church's origins and history within the United States. Offering an account of the construction and reconstruction of the Methodist church, the authors examine the various institutional practices of the church, its organization, leadership and form of training and incorporating new members. Through their treatment of Methodism as defined by conferences bound together by a commitment to episcopal leadership and animated by various forms of lay piety, the authors help the reader understand the internal history of the denomination and its development in the United States. This student edition, ideal for classes in American Religion, Denominational History, Protestantism, and American social and cultural history, includes a chronology of significant events in the history of the church in the U.S., and concludes with a bibliographic essay intended as a guide for further reading in the history of Methodism.

Offers a fresh perspective on the American version of Methodism, its organization, leadership, and form of training and incorporating new members.

Series ForewordIntroductionBishopsAmerica EpiscopacyConstitutional MethodismTwo Patterns of EpiscopacyConferenceThe Methodist ConferenceGeneral Conference: A Continental OrderConference PoliticizedFratricideFormalizationPluralismMembersMaking Moral Christians and Loyal MethodistsClass Meeting and Sunday School, 1816-1866Sunday School for All, 1866-1915From Class Meeting to Probationer's Class, 1866-1915The Sunday School Renaissance, 1915-1935Making Methodist Disciples, 1939-1968Abbreviations Used in This VolumeA Chronology of American MethodismBibliographical EssayIndex