Wesleyan/Methodist Studies: Global Methodist Church Resources

This concise booklet, 32 pages in length, contains seventy-seven questions and answers designed to be used by children, youth, and adults to ground them in the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith and Wesleyan doctrinal tradition.

This resource draws on the riches of Holy Scripture, historic creeds, and the vibrant Wesleyan tradition to explain the powerful truths that serve as a foundation for the Christian faith. The goal of catechesis is to train disciples to understand, recall, profess, and enjoy the church s essential teachings. You will discover herein a supporting resource to A Catechism of Christian Faith and Doctrine for the Global Methodist Church and an invitation to receive the faith once delivered to the saints. With annotations written by David A. deSilva, PhD, a leading scholar and teacher of the church, these entries expand on the seventy-seven questions and affirmations of the catechism, further explaining these foundational theological confessions in an accessible style. This work can serve as a critical aide for anyone immersing themselves in the Christian faith, especially teachers and leaders discipling and catechizing others, new believers in the Global Methodist Church and Christianity in general, seekers curious about the Christian faith or the Wesleyan tradition.

This text emerged from the Next Methodism Summit where more than fifty Wesleyan scholars gathered in Alexandria, Virginia, in January of 2022. The event was a time of worship, fellowship, and deep theological work. The end to which they gathered was to describe essential Methodist teachings that can face the challenges posed by cultural, social, and political forces that attempt to subvert the Christian witness and reroute the focus of the Wesleyan community. This resulting work resources a vital and growing Methodism that is founded on the truth of the Christian faith as it has been received (Jude 3). It is our hope that this message of God’s self-revelation in the story of Israel and the person of Jesus of Nazareth, of wholeness, of love, and true freedom will be proclaimed by Wesleyan believers for centuries to come.

is the latest version of the Book of Doctrines and Discipline, incorporating all the changes made at the convening General Conference in Costa Rica. The text should be accurate. If you find any errors, please send them to General Conference Secretary Tom Lambrecht (tlambrecht@globalmethodist.org).

There is an online version in which more material will be added that you can access at https://globalmethodist.org/what-we-believe/

“Multiplying Methodism makes the case for renewed and bold witness for the faith. Now is the time to reclaim the theological roots and practices to fuel Methodist revival. The United Methodist Church is fracturing under the weight of long-term dysfunction and disparate theologies. Now is a season of discernment and difficult decision-making for local churches and pastors. It is also a season of energy, hope, and renewed evangelical vision in the Global Methodist Church movement.” - Publisher

The Next Methodism invites readers on a journey to discover the vitality, richness, and sheer goodness of the broader Wesleyan tradition. Methodism began in England as a movement to spread scriptural holiness across the land, to reform the church, and, ultimately, to reform the nation. It was a gracious movement of the Holy Spirit guided by Scripture, the tradition of Christian witness, and the light of reason. Methodism is now itself on the cusp of renewal and the authors of the present volume—scholars and church leaders committed to the Wesleyan message—are convinced that this renewed Wesleyan movement will emerge as unapologetically orthodox, authentically sacramental, vigorously engaged with the poor, and loving towards all people in nothing less than the holy love of Jesus Christ. The next Methodism will proclaim the good news of Christ that sets captives free in the power of the Holy Spirit to the glory of God the Father.

“O for a Heart to Praise My God: Hymns of Charles Wesley and Scriptural Liturgies—202 Charles Wesley hymns, sixteen prayers, selected psalter, and selected liturgies and rituals. All for the people of God to worship God for our benefit and his glory.” - Publisher

“The launch of the Global Methodist Church (GMC) did not come in a theological vacuum. Starting in 1972, the United Methodist Church (UMC), our predecessor, explicitly built its ecclesial house on the sandy foundation of theological pluralism, leading to its structural instability now expressed in schism. Its intent to house a broad range of theological perspectives proved unsustainable. This context clarifies one of many tasks that the GMC now faces. This new denomination must build its ecclesial house on a solid foundation marked by rigorous theology that will provide a strong basis for effective mission to our neighbors and the nations. We offer this book as a starting point for that task. Each chapter takes up a question characterized by some tension or debate in our earlier denominational life and offers theological shepherding regarding how the GMC might proceed.” - Publisher

The “Transitional Book of Doctrines and Discipline” is authored by the Global Methodist Church, serving as a foundational document outlining their beliefs and practices until a fully established Book of Discipline is developed; it essentially acts as a temporary governing document for the new denomination.