188 Years of The Stanhill Methodist Church

John Wesley preached that God’s Love was for ALL people and through Jesus all people could know God’s Love forever. Preaching the Gospel is central to Methodism.

John Wesley recognised that lay people could be called and used by God to preach, hence Local Preachers, male or female, are accredited by the Methodist Church to lead Worship and Preach. They are a vital part of the Methodist Church , assisting ordained ministers. In 1744 the First Conference was convened by John Wesley. The Conference is the governing body of the Methodist Church and meets annually to discuss matters affecting the life of the church, the nation and the world. (There are 80 million Methodists worldwide – 2025) The President is always an ordained presbyter ( minister), male or female. The Vice President is always a lay person or deacon, male or female. At some point during the six day Conference the newly elected President sits on John Wesley’s chair and is presented with John Welsey’s field Bible. In Methodism everything is connected! We are connected to God through Jesus. The Methodist Church is called The Connexion, this dates back to the early days of the Methodist movement. Still, today, a group of local Methodist Churches is called a circuit

which is part of a wider District and in turn part of the whole Methodist Connexion.

Distinctive features of Methodism: The emphasis on ALL. Personal experience of God. Social Justice – our Faith is lived out in action.

Methodists have had a huge impact historically on areas such as: Education, Prison Reform, Emancipation for slavery, Workers rights and Trade Unions. Pioneers of alternative life styles.