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Connexionalism
Connexionalism, also spelled connectionalism, is the Christian theology, theological understanding and foundation of Methodism, Methodist ecclesiastical polity, as practised in the Methodist Church in Britain, Methodist Church in Ireland, United Methodist Church, Free Methodist Church, African Methodist Episcopal Church, African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church, 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. It refers to the way in which Methodist churches and other institutions are connected and work together to support one another, share resources, and carry out Christian mission, mission and Christian ministry, ministry. 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 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christian Theology
Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologians use biblical exegesis, rationality, rational analysis and argument. Theologians may undertake the study of Christian theology for a variety of reasons, such as in order to: * help them better understand Christian tenets * make comparative religion, comparisons between Christianity and other traditions * Christian apologetics, defend Christianity against objections and criticism * facilitate reforms in the Christian church * assist in the evangelism, propagation of Christianity * draw on the resources of the Christian tradition to address some present situation or perceived need * education in Christian philosophy, especially in Neoplatonism, Neoplatonic philosophyLouth, Andrew. The Origins of the Christian Mystical Tradition: From Plato ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Christian Denomination
A Christian denomination is a distinct religious body within Christianity that comprises all church congregations of the same kind, identifiable by traits such as a name, particular history, organization, leadership, theological doctrine, worship style and sometimes a founder. It is a secular and neutral term, generally used to denote any established Christian church. Unlike a cult or sect, a denomination is usually seen as part of the Christian religious mainstream. Most Christian denominations self-describe themselves as ''churches'', whereas some newer ones tend to interchangeably use the terms ''churches'', ''assemblies'', ''fellowships'', etc. Divisions between one group and another are defined by authority and doctrine; issues such as the nature of Jesus, the authority of apostolic succession, biblical hermeneutics, theology, ecclesiology, eschatology, and papal primacy may separate one denomination from another. Groups of denominations—often sharing broadly simi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 Church, the Oriental Orthodox Churches, the Eastern Orthodox Church, the Scandinavian Lutheran Churches, the Methodist Churches, the Anglican Communion, and the Free Church of England, view the diaconate as an order of ministry. Origin and development The word ''deacon'' is derived from the Greek word (), which is a standard ancient Greek word meaning "servant", "waiting-man", "minister", or "messenger". It is generally assumed that the office of deacon originated in the selection of seven men by the apostles, among them Stephen, to assist with the charitable work of the early church as recorded in Acts of the Apostles chapter 6. The title ''deaconess'' ( grc, διακόνισσα, diakónissa, label=none) is not found in the Bible ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Presbyter
Presbyter () is an honorific title for Christian clergy. The word derives from the Greek ''presbyteros,'' which means elder or senior, although many in the Christian antiquity would understand ''presbyteros'' to refer to the bishop functioning as overseer. The word Presbyter is also mentioned in the New Testament. In modern Catholic and Orthodox usage, ''presbyter'' is distinct from ''bishop'' and synonymous with ''priest''. In predominant Protestant usage, ''presbyter'' does not refer to a member of a distinctive priesthood called ''priests,'' but rather to a minister, pastor, or elder. Etymology The word ''presbyter'' etymologically derives from Greek ''πρεσβύτερος'' (''presbyteros''), the comparative form of ''πρέσβυς'' (''presbys''), "old man". However, while the English word priest has presbyter as the etymological origin, the distinctive Greek word (Greek ἱερεύς ''hiereus'') for "priest" is never used for presbyteros/episkopos in the New Testame ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Religious Minister
In Christianity, a minister is a person authorised by a church or other religious organization to perform functions such as teaching of beliefs; leading services such as weddings, baptisms or funerals; or otherwise providing spiritual guidance to the community. The term is taken from Latin ''minister'' ("servant", "attendant"). In some church traditions the term is usually used for people who have ordained, but in other traditions it can also be used for non-ordained people who have a pastoral or liturgical ministry. In Catholic, Orthodox (Eastern and Oriental), Anglican and Lutheran churches, the concept of a priesthood is emphasized. In other denominations such as Baptist, Methodist and Calvinist churches ( Congregationalist and Presbyterian), the term "minister" usually refers to a member of the ordained clergy who leads a congregation or participates in a role in a parachurch ministry; such a person may serve as an elder (presbyter), pastor, preacher, bishop, or chaplain. ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Superintendent (ecclesiastical)
Superintendent is the title given to a person who is a leader of a Christian denomination at the regional or national level in some Protestant denominations. Lutheran usage This title has been used in Lutheranism since 1527 for pastors leading a denomination at the regional level.The office was similar to that of bishop, but instead of being ordained by the archbishop, the superintendent was appointed by the Crown. This new model of ecclesiastical polity was partly political, as the Roman Catholic bishops before the Reformation held considerable political power and often used it against the king. Superintendents' loyalty was supposed to lie with the head of the church, the monarch. Some Lutheran theologians also considered the term less Catholic and therefore preferable to 'bishop'. Presbyterian usage The Presbyterian Church of Scotland's First Book of Discipline of 1560 provided for Scotland to be divided into ten dioceses with superintendents. Methodist usage The term " ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Methodist Circuit
The organisation of the Methodist Church of Great Britain is based on the principle of connexionalism. This means that British Methodism, from its inception under John Wesley (1703–1791), has always laid strong emphasis on mutual support, in terms of ministry, mission and finance, of one local congregation for another. No singular church community has ever been seen in isolation either from its immediately neighbouring church communities or from the centralised national organisation. Wesley himself journeyed around the country, preaching and establishing local worshipping communities, called "societies", often under lay leadership. Soon these local communities of worshipping Christians formalised their relationships with neighbouring Methodist communities to create "circuits", and the circuits and societies contained within them, were from the very beginning 'connected' (hence the distinctive Methodist concept of the "Connexion") to the centre and Methodism's governing body, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
List Of Church Of England Dioceses
There are 42 Church of England dioceses, each being an administrative territorial unit governed by a bishop. These cover England, the Isle of Man, the Channel Islands and a small part of Wales. The Diocese in Europe is also a part of the Church of England, and covers the whole of continental Europe, Morocco and the post-Soviet states. The structure of dioceses within the Church of England was initially inherited from the Catholic Church as part of the Protestant Reformation. During the Reformation a number of new dioceses were founded, but no more were then created until the middle of the 19th century, when dioceses were founded mainly in response to the growing population, especially in the northern industrial cities. The most recent diocese to be established was the Diocese of Leeds, which came into being on 20 April 2014. Prior to that, no new dioceses had been created since 1927. Leeds was created by combining three previous dioceses: the Diocese of Bradford, the Diocese of ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Selina, Countess Of Huntingdon
Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon (24 August 1707 – 17 June 1791) was an English religious leader who played a prominent part in the religious revival of the 18th century and the Methodist movement in England and Wales. She founded an evangelical branch in England and Sierra Leone, known as the Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion. She helped finance and guide early Methodism and was the first principal of Trevecca College, Wales, established in 1768 to train Methodist ministers. With construction of 64 chapels in England and Wales, plus mission work in colonial America, she is estimated to have spent over £100,000 on these activities, a huge sum when a family of four could live on £31 per year. A regular correspondent of George Whitefield and John Wesley, she is also remembered for her adversarial relationships with other Methodists. Personal life Selina Shirley was born in August 1707 at Astwell Castle, Northamptonshire, second daughter of Washington Shirley, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Countess Of Huntingdon's Connexion
The Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion is a small society of evangelical churches, founded in 1783 by Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, as a result of the Evangelical Revival. For many years it was strongly associated with the Calvinist Methodist movement of George Whitefield. History The Countess of Huntingdon's Connexion was founded in 1783 by Selina Hastings, Countess of Huntingdon, as a result of the Evangelical Revival. It seceded from the Church of England, founded its own training establishment – Trevecca College – and built up a network of chapels across England in the late 18th century. In 1785 John Marrant (1755–1791), an African American from New York and the South who settled in London after the American Revolutionary War, became ordained as a minister with the Connexion. He was supported in travel to Nova Scotia as a missionary to minister to the Black Loyalists who had been resettled there by the Crown. Many of the members of the congrega ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nonconformist (Protestantism)
In English church history, the Nonconformists, also known as a Free Church person, are Protestant Christians who did not "conform" to the governance and usages of the established church, the Church of England ( Anglican Church). Use of the term in England was precipitated after the Restoration of the Stuart monarchy in 1660, when the Act of Uniformity 1662 renewed opposition to reforms within the established church. By the late 19th century the term specifically included other Reformed Christians ( Presbyterians and Congregationalists), plus the Baptists, Brethren, Methodists, and Quakers. The English Dissenters such as the Puritans who violated the Act of Uniformity 1559 – typically by practising radical, sometimes separatist, dissent – were retrospectively labelled as Nonconformists. By law and social custom, Nonconformists were restricted from many spheres of public life – not least, from access to public office, civil service careers, or degrees at univer ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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 administrative body of the Catholic Church ** Congregation for Bishops ** Congregation for the Causes of Saints ** Sacred Congregation of Rites * Religious congregation, a religious institute of the Catholic Church in which simple vows are taken * Congregation (group of houses), a subdivision of some religious institutes in the Catholic Church * Qahal, an Israelite organizational structure often translated as ''congregation'' * Congregation (university), an assembly of senior members of a university * The general audience in a ward in The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints Music * The Congregation (band), an English pop group, sold in the US and Canada as The English Congregation * ''Congregation'' (The Afghan Whigs album) **"Congre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
