We Are United Methodist
"Open Hearts. Open Minds. Open Doors."
The United Methodist Church is a global denomination that opens hearts, opens minds and opens doors through active engagement with our world. The mission of The United Methodist Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
A United Methodist is someone who joins in that mission by putting faith and love into action. We believe that God loves all people, and that we share in expressing that love. So the United Methodist tradition emphasizes God's grace and in serving others. We believe that Jesus Christ is the fullest expression of God's love--showing us the fullness of God's care through Jesus' teachings, death and resurrection.
John Wesley started the Methodist movement in 18th century England. His teachings on practical divinity (living out our faith) and appeals to reason and experience form important aspects of United Methodist practice today.
A United Methodist is someone who joins in that mission by putting faith and love into action. We believe that God loves all people, and that we share in expressing that love. So the United Methodist tradition emphasizes God's grace and in serving others. We believe that Jesus Christ is the fullest expression of God's love--showing us the fullness of God's care through Jesus' teachings, death and resurrection.
John Wesley started the Methodist movement in 18th century England. His teachings on practical divinity (living out our faith) and appeals to reason and experience form important aspects of United Methodist practice today.
Our Beliefs as Christians
United Methodists share a common heritage with all Christians. According to our foundational statement of beliefs found in The Book of Discipline, we share the following basic affirmations in common with all Christian communities.
Explore what we say about God, human being, the church, the Bible and more.
Explore what we say about God, human being, the church, the Bible and more.
Our History
Though The United Methodist Church was officially created in 1968, its history dates back to 1730 when John and Charles Wesley, two students at Oxford University in England, gathered a small group of students who sought to spread the Methodist movement.
At about the same time, people like Philip William Otterbein, a German-American clergyman, and Martin Boehm, a Mennonite preacher, were leading similar movements in America that helped people grow their faith through the United Brethren in Christ Church.
Across the decades, both movements spread and grew, often merging to form new denominations. In 1968, both strands of Christianity came together to form The United Methodist Church.
At about the same time, people like Philip William Otterbein, a German-American clergyman, and Martin Boehm, a Mennonite preacher, were leading similar movements in America that helped people grow their faith through the United Brethren in Christ Church.
Across the decades, both movements spread and grew, often merging to form new denominations. In 1968, both strands of Christianity came together to form The United Methodist Church.
Officially, Methodism came to what is now Arkansas around 1815. White Hall (once called Grenshaw Springs and Grenshaw “Hall” Springs) is on Arkansas Highway 365 North in Jefferson County. The city developed slowly—first as an early nineteenth-century rest stop for early settlers who were drawn to the pristine water that flowed freely in pools above the ground, then later, during the early twentieth century, as the most direct route for the early Dollarway Road, the first paved (concrete) road in Arkansas, which ran approximately 22.2 miles from the city limits of Pine Bluff (Jefferson County) to Little Rock (Pulaski County). During World War II, the United States Army’s Chemical Warfare Division began construction of the Pine Bluff Arsenal on December 4, 1941, near the future city’s northern boundaries. The 6.8 square miles of city boundaries run irregularly west of the Arkansas River and extend to Interstate 530, which is about forty miles from Little Rock. The eastern boundary extends to the Pine Bluff Arsenal.
When and how White Hall got its name is a matter of undocumented oral traditions—legend and speculation—handed down through oral accounts not always recorded judiciously. The late Ida Mae Gandy, a teacher and early member of the White Hall Methodist Church who interviewed residents and recorded her findings, probably had the most reliable account. According to her, settlers began to move to the area in the mid-nineteenth century for use of the underground water that flowed into above-ground pools of clear, pure drinking water. Area cemetery records and tombstones indeed record deaths in the 1880s. The pools were called Grenshaw or Grenshaw “Hall” Springs. One can still see where one of the pools was located, and water still flows above the ground.
Tradition holds that a nondenominational church was built near the springs along with a building to shelter travelers and early settlers. The name White Hall supposedly was derived from an itinerate preacher named White who preached at the church and a man named Hall who supposedly found the springs. A more plausible explanation is that the area was named after the church and identified as White Hall because it was the only whitewashed wood structure nearby and not always identified as a church. Early settlers and travelers often referred to the area by the building’s white washed color as that “White Hall” building.
Nonetheless, all oral traditions and accounts seem to revolve around the establishment and history of the first church in White Hall. The first tombstone in the church’s cemetery is that of Richard Ammons, who died in 1885. By 1895, White Hall Church had become White Hall Methodist Church, later renamed White Hall United Methodist Church after the merger of 1968.
When and how White Hall got its name is a matter of undocumented oral traditions—legend and speculation—handed down through oral accounts not always recorded judiciously. The late Ida Mae Gandy, a teacher and early member of the White Hall Methodist Church who interviewed residents and recorded her findings, probably had the most reliable account. According to her, settlers began to move to the area in the mid-nineteenth century for use of the underground water that flowed into above-ground pools of clear, pure drinking water. Area cemetery records and tombstones indeed record deaths in the 1880s. The pools were called Grenshaw or Grenshaw “Hall” Springs. One can still see where one of the pools was located, and water still flows above the ground.
Tradition holds that a nondenominational church was built near the springs along with a building to shelter travelers and early settlers. The name White Hall supposedly was derived from an itinerate preacher named White who preached at the church and a man named Hall who supposedly found the springs. A more plausible explanation is that the area was named after the church and identified as White Hall because it was the only whitewashed wood structure nearby and not always identified as a church. Early settlers and travelers often referred to the area by the building’s white washed color as that “White Hall” building.
Nonetheless, all oral traditions and accounts seem to revolve around the establishment and history of the first church in White Hall. The first tombstone in the church’s cemetery is that of Richard Ammons, who died in 1885. By 1895, White Hall Church had become White Hall Methodist Church, later renamed White Hall United Methodist Church after the merger of 1968.
Our Values
LearnBy reaching out to and serving those around us, we will share God's love and His message of hope with the people in our community.
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LoveThrough weekly Bible studies, worship gatherings, and small groups, we will learn more about God and grow in our knowledge and love for Him.
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LeadBy making disciples and supporting fellow believers as they step out to launch new churches and ministries around the world, we will expand our reach to exhibit God's love to people across the globe.
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Our Structure
The United Methodist Church does not have a central headquarters or a single executive leader. Duties are divided among bodies that include the General Conference, the Council of Bishops and the Judicial Council. These entities are required by our Constitution to be part of our structure. Each plays a significant role in the life of the church.
General conference
The only body that can set official policy and speak for the denomination is the General Conference. Members are divide equally between clergy and laity. These members are elected by their respective annual conferences every four years. Judicial Council
As the denomination’s highest judicial body or "court," the Judicial Council's nine members, made up of laity and clergy, are elected by the General Conference and normally meet twice a year to consider whether actions of the various church bodies adhere to the constitution and follow the rules outlined in the Book of Discipline. Council of Bishops
Bishops of The United Methodist Church provide spiritual leadership to almost 12 million persons in a broad range of settings on four continents, including North America, Europe, Africa and Asia. In the United Methodist tradition, bishops are not "ordained" as bishops, but are clergy elected and consecrated to the office of bishop. |
Annual Conference
All local churches are organized into an annual conference presided by a bishop. The Arkansas Conference of the United Methodist Church is the organization responsible for coordinating nearly 500 United Methodist churches and ministries and nearly 500 clergy. Charge (church) Conference
Each local church is appointed a pastor by the bishop to serve. Some churches share a pastor. These groups of churches united by a shared pastor are referred to as a "charge". Each year the "charge" holds a conference to elect their lay members to the annual conference, vote on business matters of the local church, and approve candidates for ministry. Pastor
Our local churches vary in size, scope of ministry, and context. Therefore, we have various types of pastors. White Hall currently has an ordained elder who is appointed by the bishop of the Arkansas annual conference to serve its ministry by preaching and teaching the word of God, ordering the the life of the church, serving, and administering the sacraments of baptism and Holy Communion. |