The Spencer Churches (less commonly called the Union Churches) are two African-American

Christian denominations Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

in the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

that resulted from an 1860s

schism A schism ( , , or, less commonly, ) is a division between people, usually belonging to an organization, movement, or religious denomination. The word is most frequently applied to a split in what had previously been a single religious body, suc ...

in the Union Church of Africans (also known as African Union Church). That denomination was founded by

Peter Spencer Peter or Pete Spencer may refer to: *Peter Spencer (religious leader) (1782–1843), American Christian leader *Peter Spencer (journalist) (active 1970s onwards), British television news journalist *Peter Spencer (Royal Navy officer) (born 1947), B ...

, a freed slave, in

Wilmington, Delaware Wilmington ( Lenape: ''Paxahakink /'' ''Pakehakink)'' is the largest city in the U.S. state of Delaware. The city was built on the site of Fort Christina, the first Swedish settlement in North America. It lies at the confluence of the Christina ...

in 1813.

History

The

Union American Methodist Episcopal Church The Union American Methodist Episcopal Church, which is usually called the U.A.M.E. Church, was formally organized as a separate denomination in 1865 by some congregations of the African Union Church founded by Peter Spencer in 1813. In May 201 ...

was formed in 1865. The following year, a church in Maryland joined the African Union Church, and it was renamed as the African Union First Colored Methodist Protestant Church and Connection, known as the A.U.M.P. Church.Russell, A.U.M.P. Church history, 1920
''Documenting the American South'', University of North Carolina In May 2012, these two denominations and three other black denominations (the

African Methodist Episcopal Church The African Methodist Episcopal Church, usually called the AME Church or AME, is a Black church, predominantly African American Methodist Religious denomination, denomination. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian theology and has a connexionalism, c ...

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 ...

, and Christian Methodist Episcopal Church) entered into

full communion Full communion is a communion or relationship of full agreement among different Christian denominations that share certain essential principles of Christian theology. Views vary among denominations on exactly what constitutes full communion, but ...

with each other and with the

United Methodist Church 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 evangelical ...

, which had been predominantly white for much of the late 19th and 20th centuries. The churches had been negotiating such action for ten years, after the United Methodist Church had formally apologized for racial discrimination of the past. In the early 19th century, some African Americans had founded independent denominations in order to have full authority in their own churches. The AME Church was founded in Philadelphia, the AME Zion Church in New York, and the African Union Church in Wilmington. After the American Civil War, the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in the South as a black congregation. Before the American Civil War, the Methodist Episcopal Church had split into Northern and Southern denominations, dividing over the Northern churches' opposition to slavery. In the 20th century, those churches had reunited as the United Methodist Church. These five denominations agreed to "recognize each other’s churches, share sacraments, and affirm their clergy and ministries." (access url updated 16 June 2016)

References

{{Methodist-stub African-American history of Delaware Historically African-American Christian denominations History of Christianity in the United States History of Methodism in the United States Religious organizations established in 1813 Methodist denominations in North America Methodist denominations established in the 19th century 1813 establishments in the United States Wilmington, Delaware