TITLE:Pan-Methodist union approved
Release # 040 {2904} April 24, 1996
DENVER (UMNS) -- The establishment of a commission to create a plan of union for four Methodist denominations was overwhelmingly approved here April 23 by the 1996 United Methodist General Conference.
Such a plan would merge the United Methodist, African Methodist Episcopal (AME), African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AMEZ) and Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) churches. Each denomination will have six representatives on the commission.
By a vote of 767 to 45, delegates agreed the plan of union will be submitted to the next General Conference in 2000. It also will be considered by the AME and AMEZ churches that year and at the CME General Conference in 2002.
The vote also acknowledged and repented the "racism that separated American Methodism and fragmented ourselves and the world."
The AME church was formed in the 18th century by black Methodists who were turned away from having communion with whites. The AME church later split, and the AMEZ church was formed. The CME church was established by white southern Methodists after slavery to keep blacks and whites in separate churches.
In 1994, the Commission on Pan-Methodist Cooperation authorized a study commission, which has requested the commitment to reunion. The plan can help heal past wounds, offer good
stewardship of resources and provide "a more effective witness in the global community," according to the proposal.-- Linda Bloom
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