About the United Methodist Church
Today, Roberts Chapel is among 70 churches located in the Lexington District of the United Methodist Church. The Lexington District is a member of the Kentucky Annual Conference, one of many conferences affiliated with the denomination throughout the world.
The United Methodist Church has a rich heritage rooted in biblical Christianity and a reform movement within the Church of England during the eighteenth century. The founders of Methodism were two brothers, John and Charles Wesley. John was a gifted preacher, teacher, and administrator while Charles is best known for over 6,000 hymns which he wrote. The term "Methodist" was coined by critics of the Wesleys, who often ridiculed the methodical way they pursued and served God.
Although Wesley never intended for his followers to leave the Anglican Church, the occurrence of the American Revolution necessitated the organization of a separate denomination in 1784. Preachers Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury were ordained as the first bishops of American Methodism.
Throughout the course of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, the Methodist movement experienced unprecedented growth, initially aided by the westward expansion in North America along with the rapid advancement of a team of clergy which tended to travel by horseback, eventually becoming known as circuit riders.
In 1968, the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren, two completely separate denominations, officially merged. The result was the birth of the United Methodist Church.
Today, more than 40,000 United Methodist congregations can be found worshiping throughout most parts of the world. These congregations represent approximately 12,000,000 members, two-thirds of which are found in the United States alone.