Methodism, like all Christian denominations, traces its roots back to the early Christian church and to the teachings of Christ, Paul, Augustine, Francis, and others. In the 1700's Christianity experienced a vital and dynamic movement that swept across England. This awakening was largely the result of the labors of a few men, especially John Wesley, Charles Wesley, and George Whitefield. It was this eighteenth century English revival under the work of John Wesley that eventually gave birth to the Methodist movement.

In America, itinerant preachers spread the good news and Wesley's teachings to the settlers. After the Revolution a separate church was found, the Methodist Episcopal Church. Other Methodist denominations also formed. In 1968 the Evangelical United Brethren and The Methodist Church joined to form The United Methodist Church. The United Methodist Church is the second largest Protestant denomination.