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Connexionalism, also spelled connectionalism, is the
theological Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing the s ...
understanding and foundation of
Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's ...
ecclesiastical polity Ecclesiastical polity is the operational and governance structure of a church or of a Christian denomination. It also denotes the ministerial structure of a church and the authority relationships between churches. Polity relates closely to e ...
, as practised in the
Methodist Church in Britain The Methodist Church of Great Britain is a Protestant Christian denomination in Britain, and the mother church to Methodists worldwide. It participates in the World Methodist Council, and the World Council of Churches among other ecumenical as ...
, Methodist Church in Ireland, United Methodist Church, Free Methodist Church,
African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a predominantly African American Methodist denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexional polity. The African Methodist Episcopal ...
,
African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church African or Africans may refer to: * Anything from or pertaining to the continent of Africa: ** People who are native to Africa, descendants of natives of Africa, or individuals who trace their ancestry to indigenous inhabitants of Africa *** Ethn ...
, Bible Methodist Connection of Churches, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, Methodist Church in the Caribbean and the Americas, and many of the countries where Methodism was established by missionaries sent out from these churches. The United Methodist Church defines ''connection'' as the principle that "all leaders and congregations are connected in a network of loyalties and commitments that support, yet supersede, local concerns." Accordingly, the primary decision-making bodies in Methodism are
conferences A conference is a meeting of two or more experts to discuss and exchange opinions or new information about a particular topic. Conferences can be used as a form of group decision-making, although discussion, not always decisions, are the main ...
, which serve to gather together representatives of various levels of church hierarchy. In the United Methodist Church and Free Methodist Church, where bishops provide church leadership, connexionalism is a variety of
episcopal polity An episcopal polity is a hierarchical form of church governance ("ecclesiastical polity") in which the chief local authorities are called bishops. (The word "bishop" derives, via the British Latin and Vulgar Latin term ''*ebiscopus''/''*bis ...
. Many Methodist churches, such as the British Methodist Church, do not have bishops. In world Methodism, a given connexion (that is, denomination) is usually autonomous.


Overview

In the history of
Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth. It is the world's largest and most widespread religion with roughly 2.38 billion followers representing one-third of the global popula ...
in
England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe ...
, a ''connexion'' was a circuit of
prayer Prayer is an invocation or act that seeks to activate a rapport with an object of worship through deliberate communication. In the narrow sense, the term refers to an act of supplication or intercession directed towards a deity or a deifie ...
groups who would employ travelling ministers alongside the regular ministers attached to each
congregation A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: *Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administra ...
. This method of organizing emerged in 18th-century English nonconformist religious circles; this is why the otherwise old-fashioned spelling (''connexion'' rather than ''connection'') is retained in the British church. The Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion, for instance, was founded by Selina, Countess of Huntingdon. Over time, as Methodism became a separate church, this structure of connexions came to form a new system of polity, separate from episcopal polity. Connexional polity in Britain has always been characterized by a strong central organization which holds an annual conference. The connexion is divided into districts in the charge of a chairperson. Methodist districts often correspond approximately, in geographical terms, to counties – as do Church of England dioceses. The districts are divided into circuits governed by the circuit meeting and led and administrated principally by a superintendent minister. Ministers are appointed to circuits rather than to individual churches. Most notably, there are no bishops in the British connexion. The term ''full connexion'' is used in Great Britain and in Ireland to refer to presbyters and
deacon A deacon is a member of the diaconate, an office in Christian churches that is generally associated with service of some kind, but which varies among theological and denominational traditions. Major Christian churches, such as the Catholic Chur ...
s being "subject to the rules and discipline of the Conference of the Methodist Church", and specifically that they are subject to being stationed (i.e. appointed to ministry in a local circuit) at the direction of the conference. Free Methodist churches and United Methodist churches are generally organized on a connexional model, related but not identical to that used in Britain. Pastors are assigned to congregations by bishops, distinguishing it from presbyterian government. Methodist denominations typically give lay members representation at regional and national meetings (conferences) at which the business of the church is conducted, This connexional organizational model differs further from the congregational model, for example of
Baptist Baptists form a major branch of Protestantism distinguished by baptizing professing Christian believers only ( believer's baptism), and doing so by complete immersion. Baptist churches also generally subscribe to the doctrines of soul c ...
and Congregationalist churches.


See also

* Circuit rider (religious)


References


Footnotes


Bibliography

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Further reading

* {{Methodism footer Ecclesiology Methodism Church organization Ecclesiastical polities