Global Methodist Church membership grows to 6,000 churches

The Methodist denomination established as an orthodox alternative to the United Methodist Church announced Friday it reached a milestone of 6,000 affiliated churches. The Global Methodist Church said the number included congregations from multiple nations and various languages. The denomination had just 17 member congregations when it formed in 2022. Over half of the Global Methodist congregations joined the denomination after breaking away from the UMC, many of them over disagreements with the denomination’s lack of commitment to Biblical standards of sexuality.

The United Methodist Church last year voted for a proposal to change its structure and allow congregations in different geographical areas to set their own rules for doctrinal issues like gay marriage and clergy ordination. The change was made largely to keep more conservative African congregations from leaving the denomination. Lower-tier regional UMC conferences are still individually ratifying the decision.

Dig deeper: Listen to my report on African pastors’ views on the UMC’s structural change.