What Do Methodists Believe?

John Wesley

Traditionally, we have emphasized the following:

• God will comfort, guide, and forgive every person, no matter who they are or what they’ve done through confession.
• Serving others and Christian faith go hand in hand.
• We find peace with God and spiritual fulfillment both in solitary moments of reflection and in a community of faith.
• Our church is made up of people who share faith in Jesus Christ.
• We seek to make our private and our public actions congruent with our faith.
• We are a global movement of churches that’s making a difference in the world.

In practice, we are similar to other Protestant denominations, affirming our beliefs through the sacred symbols of baptism and communion. United Methodists share with other Christians the conviction that scripture is the primary source and criterion for Christian doctrine. Through scripture the living Christ meets us in the experience of redeeming grace. We are convinced that Jesus Christ is the living Word of God in our midst whom we trust in life and death.

Through baptism, we accept God’s gifts through Jesus. There is no strict rule among United Methodists about how baptism must be performed, although sprinkling water on the head of the person being baptized is most common. Everyone is accepted and welcome at the communion table, whether members of the church or not, kids or adults.

Today, United Methodists comprise the second largest Protestant denomination in the United States. Our churches are connected by a system to guide our work and govern our policies. We continue to take the lead in social, spiritual, political and moral concerns. In the tradition of John and Charles Wesley, our members study scripture, encourage thoughtful debate, and confront the tough issues of the day. We still lead with our hearts, keep our minds open, and welcome everyone through our doors.

Our church is made up of people, not drywall and plywood and stucco. Church carries a lot more importance and has more soul than a building; it is a “community of faith,” meaning that church can be out in the streets, or wherever “two or more are gathered,” as Jesus told us. While the unique function of the church is worship, it is also wherever its members gather to celebrate God in their lives. When we pray together, make plans together, do volunteer work together, have worship services together, that’s church.

Being a United Methodist doesn’t mean that you must believe everything all other Methodists believe. This church encourages you to seek the answers to deep questions not in doctrine, but instead through your own ability to reason, using experience, tradition, and, most importantly, the Bible as a guide. One of our church leaders, Bishop Bruce Blake, made this point crystal clear: “United Methodists are never expected to agree with the church 100% because every United Methodist has a brain and is encouraged to use it.”

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The United Methodist symbol is called the “Cross and Flame.” The Cross and Flame is a registered trademark and its use is supervised by the General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church. Permission to use the Cross and Flame must be obtained from the General Council on Finance and Administration of The United Methodist Church – Legal Department, 1200 Davis Street, Evanston, IL 60201.The history and significance of the Cross and Flame emblem are as rich and diverse as The United Methodist Church. The insignia’s birth quickly followed the union of two denominations in 1968: The Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church. Following more than two dozen conceptualizations, a traditional symbol—the cross—was linked with a single flame with dual tongues of fire. The resulting insignia is rich in meaning. It relates The United Methodist church to God through Christ (cross) and the Holy Spirit (flame). The flame is a reminder of Pentecost when witnesses were unified by the power of the Holy Spirit and saw “tongues, as of fire” (Acts 2:3). The elements of the emblem also remind us of a transforming moment in the life of Methodism’s founder, John Wesley, when he sensed God’s presence and felt his heart “strangely warmed.”