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An episcopal polity is a hierarchical form of church governance in which the chief local authorities are called bishops. The word "bishop" here is derived via the British Latin and Vulgar Latin term *ebiscopus/*biscopus, from the Ancient Greek ἐπίσκοπος epískopos meaning "overseer". It is the structure used by many of the major Christian Churches and denominations, such as the Catholic, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox, Church of the East, Anglican, Lutheran and Methodist churches or denominations, and other churches founded independently from these lineages.
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was a leader in evangelicalism. The present denomination was founded in 1968 in Dallas, Texas, by union of the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church. The UMC traces its roots back to the revival movement of John and Charles Wesley in England, as well as the Great Awakening in the United States. As such, the church's theological orientation is decidedly Wesleyan. It embraces liturgical worship, holiness, and evangelical elements.
An ecclesiastical court, also called court Christian or court spiritual, is any of certain courts having jurisdiction mainly in spiritual or religious matters. In the Middle Ages, these courts had much wider powers in many areas of Europe than before the development of nation states. They were experts in interpreting canon law, a basis of which was the Corpus Juris Civilis of Justinian, which is considered the source of the civil law legal tradition.
In religious organizations, the laity consists of all members who are not part of the clergy, usually including any non-ordained members of religious orders, e.g. a nun or a lay brother.
The Church of the United Brethren in Christ is an evangelical Christian denomination with churches in 17 countries. It is Protestant, with an episcopal structure and Arminian theology, with roots in the Mennonite and German Reformed communities of 18th-century Pennsylvania, as well as close ties to Methodism. It was organized in 1800 by Martin Boehm and Philip William Otterbein and is the first American denomination that was not transplanted from Europe. It emerged from United Brethren churches that were at first unorganized, and not all of which joined this church when it was formally organized in 1800, following a 1789 conference at the Otterbein Church.
The Confessing Movement is a largely lay-led theologically conservative Christian movement that opposes the influence of theological liberalism and theological progressivism currently within several mainline Protestant denominations and seeks to return them to its view of orthodox doctrine, or form a new denomination and disfellowship (excommunicate) them if the situation becomes untenable. Those who eventually deem dealing with theological liberalism and theological progressivism within their churches and denominations as not being tenable anymore would later join or start Confessional Churches and/or Evangelical Churches that continue with the traditions of their respective denominations and maintaining orthodox doctrine while being ecclesiastically separate from the Mainline Protestant denominations.
A Methodist local preacher is a layperson who has been accredited by the Methodist Church to lead worship and preach on a frequent basis. With separation from the Church of England by the end of the 18th century, a clear distinction was recognised between itinerant preachers and the local preachers who assisted them. Local preachers have played an important role in Methodism since the earliest days of the movement, and have also been important in English social history. These preachers continue to serve an indispensable role in the Methodist Church of Great Britain, in which the majority of church services are led by laypeople. In certain Methodist connexions, a person becomes a local preacher after obtaining a license to preach. In many parts of Methodism, such as the Allegheny Wesleyan Methodist Connection, there are thus two different tiers of ministers—licensed preachers and ordained elders.
A lay preacher is a preacher who is not ordained and who may not hold a formal university degree in theology. Lay preaching varies in importance between religions and their sects.
David Jerald Lawson was an American who gained notability as a pastor and university campus minister in the Methodist and United Methodist churches, as a district superintendent, annual conference official, and as a bishop of the United Methodist Church (UMC), elected in 1984. He also played a key role establishing and developing Africa University, which is the only UMC university on the continent.
Leontine Turpeau Current Kelly was an American bishop of the United Methodist Church. She was the second woman elevated to the position of bishop within the United Methodist Church, and the first African American woman.
Robert Eric Hayes Jr. is a member and serves as Bishop Emeritus of the Global Methodist Church. At its May 22, 2023, weekly meeting, The Global Methodist Church's Transitional Leadership Council (TLC) received the Rev. Dr. Robert Hayes Jr. as a clergy member in the new denomination and then immediately voted to confer upon him the title bishop emeritus. Hayes joins Bishop Emeritus Mike Lowry as the only other bishop granted that status.
An annual conference is a regional decision-making body within various Methodist denominations. Conferences are a key characteristic of the connexional (connectional) system of government in Methodism. Annual conferences are composed primarily of the clergy members and a lay member or members from each charge. Each conference is a geographical division. In general, the smaller states in the United States hold one conference each, while larger states often include two or more conferences. Several annual conferences are held in other nations as well.
A lay leader is a member of the laity in any congregation who has been chosen as a leader either by their peers or the leadership of the congregation. In most denominations, lay leadership is not an ordained clerical office, and the lay leader's responsibilities vary according to the particular tradition of the congregation. Some organizations do not allow the lay leader to give sacraments for example, but do allow them to perform most other portions of the service that are normally the responsibility of the clergy.
The Independent Methodist Connexion is a British group of Nonconformist congregations that have their roots in the 18th-century Evangelical Revival. It emphasises the equality of all members and independence of the local church.
Kathleen Baskin-Ball was an ordained elder in the United Methodist Church. She was ordained as deacon and probationary member of the North Texas Conference in 1983 and as elder and full member of the North Texas Conference in 1988. She received national recognition for her preaching, especially to youth. She was a keynote speaker at Youth2007, the international youth conference of the UMC. She was also recognized regionally as the first female minister in North Texas to demonstrate high membership and worship attendance growth while serving as senior pastor of a large church. She had a notable career record of growth in membership, worship attendance, and people joining by profession of faith. Baskin-Ball died on December 2, 2008, after two years' illness with cancer.
The North Texas Conference is an Annual Conference. This conference encompasses a triangle-shaped northern portion of the state of Texas that spans from Dallas to Wichita Falls to Paris. The conference includes a small geographic area relative to most annual conferences. The North Texas Conference comprises 301 churches, 141,827 members, 4 districts and 20 counties.
The Philippines Central Conference of the United Methodist Church is a collection of annual conferences of the United Methodist Church in the Philippines that are organised much like jurisdictional conferences in the United States. The Philippines Central Conference is considered a member church of the World Methodist Council, and a "Central Conference" of the world-wide United Methodist Church. It is also a member of the Christian Conference of Asia and the National Council of Churches in the Philippines as The United Methodist Church in the Philippines, representing the denomination as its Philippine counterpart.
The Jurisdictional Conferences are a collection of Annual Conferences of The United Methodist Church located inside the United States.
Newell Snow Booth was an American missionary and bishop for the United Methodist Church (UMC). Booth worked as a minister in Massachusetts for the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) before joining that church's missionary program. He served in the Belgian Congo for 13 years before returning to head the African department of the Hartford Seminary Foundation. Booth was appointed bishop of Africa for the UMC in 1943 and returned to the Congo. He oversaw the construction of medical facilities and wrote textbooks in the Bantu languages. Shortly after being detained at gunpoint during the Congo Crisis he returned to the United States. Appointed Bishop of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania he also served on numerous church boards and commissions and was a church representative on the National Council of Churches, the World Methodist Council and the International African Institute.
Cynthia Fierro Harvey is an American bishop in the United Methodist Church and served as president of its Council of Bishops. She is the first Hispanic woman to lead the Council of Bishops. Harvey is the Resident Bishop of the Texas Annual Conference.
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