Methodism 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 br ...

, inclusive of the holiness movement, a penitent band is a group of Christians that meets on Saturday night to keep themselves away from temptation and

confess A confession is a statement – made by a person or by a group of persons – acknowledging some personal fact that the person (or the group) would ostensibly prefer to keep hidden. The term presumes that the speaker is providing information th ...

their sins. Saturday was the day that the founder of Methodism, John Wesley, had penitent bands meet because that was the day "the night of greatest temptation for many" as bars experienced much traffic. Penitent band meetings "were very formal, and the hymns, prayers, and teachings were designed to apply to the types of problems the members were experiencing." Members of penitent bands often included those who continually backslid from the expectations of their

class meeting The cell group is a form of church organization that is used in many Christian churches. Cell groups are generally intended to teach the Bible and personalize Christian fellowship. They are always used in cell churches, but also occur in parac ...

s. As such, four questions are asked during services of the Methodist penitent bands:

References

{{Methodism footer Methodism Christian practices Types of Christian organization

See also

References