The Reformed Free Methodist Church (RFMC) was a

Methodist Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related Christian denomination, denominations of Protestantism, Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John W ...

denomination in the conservative holiness movement.

History

The formation of the Reformed Free Methodist Church is a part of the

history of Methodism in the United States The history of Methodism in the United States dates back to the mid-18th century with the ministries of early Methodist preachers such as Laurence Coughlan and Robert Strawbridge. Following the American Revolution most of the Anglican clergy who ...

; it was founded in 1932 as a result of a

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 ...

with the Free Methodist Church spearheaded by Samuel E. West. The Reformed Free Methodist Church was one of the first denominations in the conservative holiness movement.

Name

The name of the denomination derives from the Church it left, the Free Methodist Church, as well as the word "Reformed", which does not refer to the theology of the denomination, but invokes the meaning of the word in plain English, "refined" or "improved". The Reformed Free Methodist Church upheld traditional Wesleyan-Arminian theology.

Traditions

Communicants of the Reformed Free Methodist Church sung hymns in corporate worship a cappella and wore plain dress (with black and white clothing preferred at the liturgy), in keeping with historic Holiness Methodist standards. The denomination published ''The Reformed Free Methodist Standard''.

Camp Meetings

The earlier camp meetings of the Reformed Free Methodist Church were held at McClain's Grove in Belle Vernon, Pennsylvania. The Reformed Free Methodist Church then held its annual camp meeting, the Flatwoods Camp Meeting, at Perryopolis, Pennsylvania after acquiring property there. It was free of cost, running only off of the free-will offerings of those who attended it.

Churches

The Reformed Free Methodist Church had congregations throughout North America, with notable churches existing in Buffalo, Perryopolis, Fairmont, Morgantown and Havelock, among many others. The church building of the Reformed Free Methodist Church in

Alliance, Ohio Alliance is a city in eastern Stark County, Ohio, United States. With a small district lying in adjacent Mahoning County, the city is approximately northeast of Canton, southwest of Youngstown and southeast of Cleveland. The population was 2 ...

was the oldest one in that city until it was demolished on 25 January 2019; the congregation, ministered by the Rev. Herbert Smith, is now located at the Home Mission in Alliance. The Reformed Free Methodist Church of

Morgantown, West Virginia Morgantown is a city in and the county seat of Monongalia County, West Virginia, United States, situated along the Monongahela River. The largest city in North-Central West Virginia, Morgantown is best known as the home of West Virginia Universit ...

, with a membership of around two hundred people, was unique in that its architecture resembled a

tabernacle According to the Hebrew Bible, the tabernacle ( he, מִשְׁכַּן, mīškān, residence, dwelling place), also known as the Tent of the Congregation ( he, link=no, אֹהֶל מוֹעֵד, ’ōhel mō‘ēḏ, also Tent of Meeting, etc.), ...

References

External links

Reformed Free Methodist Church, Monongalia County, W. Va.
{{Methodism footer Methodist denominations Methodist denominations in North America Holiness denominations Holiness movement History of Methodism in the United States Christian organizations established in 1932 Holiness pacifism