The African Methodist Episcopal Church
Brief History of the A.M.E. Church
Brief History of Bethel A.M.E. Church
Our Name...
African - means that the church was organized by people of African descent and heritage. It does not mean that the Church was founded in Africa or that it is for people of African descent only. It does mean that those Americans who founded it were of African descent and we proudly recognize this fact. We welcome all who worship Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior.
Methodist - refers to the Church's membership in the family of Methodist Churches. Richard Allen, the founder and first Bishop, felt that the form and format of Methodism would best suit the needs of the African community at that time.
Episcopal - refers to the form of government under which the church operates. The Episcopal form of government means that the chief executive and administrative officers of our denomination are our Bishops. Their authority is given them by the General Conference, elected representatives of the entire denomination. Their responsibilities are to oversee the spiritual and temporal affairs of the Church.
Our Beginning...
In 1787, Rev. Richard Allen, Absalon Jones and a band of followers withdraw from St. George's Methodist Church in Philadelphia because of the "unkind treatment" and discrimination with which these worshippers of African descent faced. They felt that they could no longer worship in a congregation that would not affirm them fully as children of God with equal potential and worth. Allen and the others began worshipping in a blacksmith shop. They founded the Free African Society, which was the beginning of the African Methodist Episcopal Church (AMEC).
Our Mission and Purpose...
The mission of the African Methodist Episcopal Church is to minister to the spiritual, intellectual, physical, emotional and environmental needs of all people by spreading Christ's liberating Gospel through word and deed. At every level of the Connection and in every local church, the African Methodist Episcopal Church shall engage in carrying out the spirit of the original Free African Society, out of which the A.M.E. Church evolved. That is, to seek out and save the lost, serve the needy through a continuing program of 1) preaching the Gospel, 2) feeding the hungry, 3) clothing the naked, 4) housing the homeless, 5) cheering the fallen, 6) providing jobs for the jobless, 7) administering to the needs of those in prisons, hospitals, nursing homes, asylums and mental institutions, senior citizens homes, caring for the sick, the shut-in, the mentally and socially disturbed, and 8) encouraging thrift and economic advancement. {Doctrine and Discipline of the African Methodist Episcopal Church 1992}
Our Profile...
The AME Church is composed of 2.5 million members and 8000 ministers, 6200 congregations, 19 Episcopal Districts and 115 Annual Conferences.