Methodist Episcopal Church, South facts for kids

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South (often called MEC, S) was a Christian church in America. It was a branch of the Methodist faith. This church formed in the 1800s because of a big disagreement about slavery. The main Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) split into two parts in 1845. This happened at a large meeting in Louisville, Kentucky.

The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, existed for almost 100 years. Then, in 1939, it joined with the older Methodist Episcopal Church. They also joined with most of the Methodist Protestant Church. Together, they formed a new group called the Methodist Church. Later, in 1968, this Methodist Church joined with another group. They formed the United Methodist Church. Today, the United Methodist Church is one of the largest Christian groups in America.

A small number of churches from the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, did not agree with the 1939 merger. In 1940, they formed their own church called the Southern Methodist Church. This church still exists today. Some churches from the Methodist Protestant Church also did not join the merger. They continue as a separate group in Mississippi.

History of the Split

John Wesley, who started Methodism, was very against slavery. When the Methodist Episcopal Church (MEC) began in the United States in 1784, it officially opposed slavery. Many Methodist missionaries traveled through the South. They tried to convince slave owners to free the people they enslaved. In the years after the American Revolutionary War, many enslaved people were freed. The number of free Black people grew a lot, especially in the Upper South.

As time went on, Methodists and Baptists in the South changed their views. They wanted to gain support from local farmers and plantation owners. They began to say that the Bible allowed slavery. But they also argued that Christians should treat enslaved people better.

The invention of the cotton gin made growing cotton very profitable. This led to a huge demand for enslaved people in the South. Freeing enslaved people became very rare. After some slave rebellions, states made it very hard to free anyone. In the North, Methodist churches became more and more against slavery. Some members joined the abolitionist movement, which worked to end slavery. But the Southern church accepted slavery as part of the law.

Even in the South, Methodist clergy were not supposed to own enslaved people. But in 1840, a bishop named James Osgood Andrew bought a woman. He said he feared she would be treated badly if sold to someone else. So, he kept her but let her work on her own. The MEC General Conference discussed this but did not remove Bishop Andrew. Four years later, Bishop Andrew married a woman who owned an enslaved person. This meant he now owned two enslaved people. As a bishop, he had duties in both the North and South. Many criticized him for owning enslaved people.

At the 1844 General Conference, members voted to stop Bishop Andrew from working as a bishop. This would last until he no longer owned enslaved people. Southern delegates disagreed. They said the General Conference did not have the power to punish bishops. The cultural differences that divided the country also divided the Methodist Episcopal Church. This dispute led Methodists in the South to leave. They formed their own church, the Methodist Episcopal Church, South (MEC,S). Delegates from the Southern churches met in Louisville, Kentucky, in May 1845. There, they officially started the new church.

The Civil War and Its Impact

In 1859, the MEC,S had about 511,601 white members. It also had 197,000 Black members, most of whom were enslaved. There were also 4,200 Native American members. By 1858, the MEC,S ran 106 schools and colleges.

The American Civil War caused a lot of damage. Many church buildings were destroyed. But during the war, there were also many religious revivals. These started in General Robert E. Lee's army. They spread throughout the South. Church chaplains helped the wounded soldiers after battles. John Berry McFerrin, a chaplain, remembered:

At Chickamauga, the slaughter was tremendous on both sides, but the Confederates held the field. I remained on the battlefield eleven days, nursing the sick, ministering to the wounded, and praying for the dying. The sight was awful. Thousands of men killed and wounded. They lay thick all around, shot in every possible manner, and the wounded dying every day. Among the wounded were many Federal soldiers. To these I ministered, prayed with them, and wrote letters by flag of truce to their friends in the North.

African Americans After the War

After the Civil War, enslaved African Americans became free. Many of them left the Methodist Episcopal Church, South. Some joined independent Black churches. These included the African Methodist Episcopal Church (founded in Philadelphia) and the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (founded in New York). Others joined the (Northern) Methodist Episcopal Church, which started new churches in the South.

The two independent Black denominations sent missionaries to the South after the war. They helped the newly freed people. Hundreds of thousands of new members joined these churches. By 1866, only 49,000 of the 200,000 African-American members from 1860 remained in the MEC,S.

In 1870, most of the remaining African-American members left the MEC,S. They did so on good terms with their white colleagues. They formed the Colored Methodist Episcopal Church. This church is now called the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church. They took with them church buildings and properties worth $1.5 million. This new church avoided the politics of the AME and AME Zion churches. It had over 3,000 churches and about 140,000 members.

Church Growth in the Late 1800s

Annual Conferences of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, in 1901

The MEC,S grew steadily. In 1880, it had 798,862 members. By 1886, it had 1,066,377 members, mostly white. The church also expanded its missionary work in Mexico. The MEC,S usually stayed out of politics. But in 1886, it spoke out against divorce and called for Prohibition. Prohibition was a movement to ban alcohol. The church stated:

The public has awakened to the necessity of both legal and moral suasion to control the great evils stimulated and fostered by the liquor traffic. We recognize in the license system a sin against society. Its essential immorality cannot be affected by the question whether the license be high or low. The effectual prohibition of the manufacture, sale, and use of intoxicating liquors would be emancipation from the greatest curse that now afflicts our race. The total removal of the cause of intemperance is the only remedy. This is the greatest moral question now before our people.... Resolved, That the time has now come when the church, through its press and pulpit, its individual and organized agencies, should speak out in strong language and stronger action in favor of the total removal of this great evil.

After 1844, Methodists in the South focused more on having educated clergy. Young preachers from rural areas went to college. They were often sent to lead churches in towns. There, they could build bigger churches and earn better salaries. This helped them gain respect in the community. These ministers made preaching a professional career. They also created more complex church organizations. These organizations helped with things like defending slavery, supporting soldiers during the Civil War, promoting temperance, and helping foreign missions. They also supported local colleges.

By 1892, the church had:

• 5,368 traveling preachers
• 6,481 local preachers
• 1,282,750 white members
• 357 Black members
• 10,759 Native American members
• A total of 1,305,715 members
• 13,426 Sunday schools with 95,204 teachers and 754,223 students
• 12,856 churches, valued at over $20 million

Education and Colleges

Methodist education suffered during the Civil War. Most schools closed. Some recovered later in the 1800s. But public schools were also being created across the South. These public schools were usually segregated by race.

The colleges were not in much better shape. Most were like high schools that offered a few college courses. A big exception was Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee. It had a large campus and a lot of money thanks to the Vanderbilt family. Other colleges were much smaller and poorer. These included Randolph-Macon College in Virginia, Emory University in Atlanta, Wofford College in South Carolina, and Duke University in North Carolina.

There was a need for a theology school west of the Mississippi River. This need was met when Southern Methodist University was founded in Texas in 1911. The church also supported several women's colleges. These schools improved over time to meet new education standards. The oldest Methodist women's college is Wesleyan College in Macon, Georgia.

In 1900, the MEC,S bought a school in Milton, Oregon. They renamed it "Columbia College." It opened in September 1900. But due to fewer students and lack of money, the school closed in 1925. The original wooden building was replaced in 1910 by a stone building. This building is now the city hall for the city of Milton-Freewater, Oregon.

Women in the Church

In the 1930s, other Methodist churches began to allow women to become ministers. The MEC and the Methodist Protestant Church started to ordain women. However, the MEC,S did not ordain women as pastors. This was still the case when the MEC,S merged in 1939 to form the Methodist Church.

Legacy of the MEC,S

The MEC,S helped start four important divinity schools in the South. These are Vanderbilt University Divinity School, Duke Divinity School, Candler School of Theology at Emory University, and Perkins School of Theology at Southern Methodist University. Vanderbilt separated from the church in 1914. Duke, Candler, and Perkins still have ties to the United Methodist Church. These schools welcome students from many different Christian groups. The church's publishing house, which opened in 1854, became the main office for the United Methodist Publishing House.

See also

• Category:American Methodist Episcopal, South bishops
• Christian Methodist Episcopal Church
• Methodist Episcopal Church
• African Methodist Episcopal Church
• African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church
• Wesleyanism
• United Methodist Church