Methodism

===Africa===
Most Methodist denominations in Africa follow the British Methodist tradition and see the [[Methodist Church of Great Britain]] as their mother church. Originally modelled on the British structure, since independence most of these churches have adopted an [[Episcopal polity|episcopal model]] of church governance.

====Nigeria====
The Nigerian Methodist Church is one of the largest Methodist denominations in the world and one of the largest Christian churches in Nigeria, with around two million members in 2000 congregations.<ref name="Nigeria">{{cite web|title=Methodist Church Nigeria|date=January 1963 |url=http://www.oikoumene.org/en/member-churches/methodist-church-nigeria|publisher=World Council of Churches|access-date=25 March 2014}}</ref> It has seen exponential growth since the turn of the millennium.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.lifecoalition.com/index_files/Page472.htm|title=Life Coalition International – Jesus Is The Standard|access-date=15 September 2014}}</ref>

Christianity was established in Nigeria with the arrival in 1842 of a [[Wesleyan Methodist Church (Great Britain)|Wesleyan Methodist]] missionary.<ref name="Nigeria" /> He had come in response to the request for missionaries by the [[Saro people|ex-slaves who returned to Nigeria from Sierra Leone]]. From the mission stations established in [[Badagry]] and [[Abeokuta]], the Methodist church spread to various parts of the country west of the River Niger and part of the north. In 1893 missionaries of the [[Primitive Methodism|Primitive Methodist Church]] arrived from Fernando Po, an island off the southern coast of Nigeria. From there the Methodist Church spread to other parts of the country, east of the River Niger and also to parts of the north. The church west of the River Niger and part of the north was known as the Western Nigeria District and east of the Niger and another part of the north as the Eastern Nigeria District. Both existed independently of each other until 1962 when they constituted the Conference of Methodist Church Nigeria. The conference is composed of seven districts. The church has continued to spread into new areas and has established a department for evangelism and appointed a director of evangelism. An [[episcopal polity|episcopal system]] of church governance adopted in 1976 was not fully accepted by all sections of the church until the two sides came together and resolved to end the disagreement. A new constitution was ratified in 1990. The system is still episcopal but the points which caused discontent were amended to be acceptable to both sides. Today, the Nigerian Methodist Church has a prelate, eight archbishops and 44 bishops.<ref name="Nigeria" />

====Ghana====
{{Main|Methodist Church Ghana}}
[[File:Kow Egyir and MCG College of Bishops.JPG|thumb|[[Bishops in Methodism|Methodist bishops]] at a church conference in [[Winneba]], 2008]]
Methodist Church Ghana is one of the largest Methodist denominations, with around 800,000 members in 2,905 congregations, ministered by 700 pastors.<ref name="Ghana">{{cite web|title=Methodist Church Ghana|url=https://www.oikoumene.org/en/member-churches/methodist-church-ghana|website=oikoumene.org|date=January 1960 |publisher=World Council of Churches|access-date=20 January 2017}}</ref> It has fraternal links with the British Methodist and United Methodist churches worldwide.

Methodism in Ghana came into existence as a result of the missionary activities of the [[Wesleyan Methodist Church (Great Britain)|Wesleyan Methodist Church]], inaugurated with the arrival of Joseph Rhodes Dunwell to the [[Gold Coast (British colony)|Gold Coast]] in 1835.<ref>F. L. Bartels. The Roots of Ghana Methodism. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1965, pp. 12–18.</ref> Like the mother church, the Methodist Church in Ghana was established by people of Protestant background. Roman Catholic and Anglican missionaries came to the Gold Coast from the 15th century. A school was established in Cape Coast by the Anglicans during the time of Philip Quaque, a Ghanaian priest. Those who came out of this school had Bible copies and study supplied by the [[Society for the Propagation of Christian Knowledge]]. A member of the resulting Bible study groups, William De-Graft, requested Bibles through Captain Potter of the ship ''Congo''. Not only were Bibles sent, but also a Methodist missionary. In the first eight years of the Church's life, 11 out of 21 missionaries who worked in the Gold Coast died. [[Thomas Birch Freeman]], who arrived at the Gold Coast in 1838 was a pioneer of missionary expansion. Between 1838 and 1857 he carried Methodism from the coastal areas to [[Kumasi]] in the [[Ashanti people|Asante]] hinterland of the Gold Coast. He also established Methodist Societies in Badagry and AbeoKuta in Nigeria with the assistance of William De-Graft.{{citation needed|date=April 2013}}

By 1854, the church was organized into circuits constituting a district with T. B. Freeman as chairman. Freeman was replaced in 1856 by William West. The district was divided and extended to include areas in the then Gold Coast and Nigeria by the synod in 1878, a move confirmed at the British Conference. The districts were Gold Coast District, with T. R. Picot as chairman and Yoruba and Popo District, with John Milum as chairman. Methodist evangelisation of northern Gold Coast began in 1910. After a long period of conflict with the colonial government, missionary work was established in 1955. Paul Adu was the first indigenous missionary to northern Gold Coast.{{citation needed|date=May 2022}}

In July 1961, the Methodist Church in Ghana became autonomous, and was called the Methodist Church Ghana, based on a deed of foundation, part of the church's ''Constitution and Standing Orders''.<ref name="Ghana" />

====Southern Africa====
{{Main|Methodist Church of Southern Africa}}
[[File:Methodist Mission Church, Leliefontein.jpg|thumb|right|A Methodist chapel in [[Leliefontein, Northern Cape]], South Africa]]

The [[Methodist Church of Southern Africa|Methodist Church]] operates across South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Lesotho and Swaziland, with a limited presence in Zimbabwe and Mozambique. It is a member church of the [[World Methodist Council]].

Methodism in [[Southern Africa]] began as a result of lay Christian work by an Irish soldier of the English Regiment, John Irwin, who was stationed at the Cape and began to hold prayer meetings as early as 1795.<ref>Millard-Jackson, J. "Who called the tune? Methodist Missionary policy in South Africa during the 19th century" in Forster, D. and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), p. 31.</ref> The first Methodist lay preacher at the Cape, George Middlemiss, was a soldier of the 72nd Regiment of the British Army stationed at the Cape in 1805.<ref>Forster, D. "God's mission in our context, healing and transforming responses" in Forster, D and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), pp. 79–80.</ref> This foundation paved the way for missionary work by Methodist missionary societies from Great Britain, many of whom sent missionaries with the 1820 English settlers to the Western and Eastern Cape. Among the most notable of the early missionaries were Barnabas Shaw and William Shaw.<ref>Millard-Jackson, J. "Who called the tune? Methodist Missionary policy in South Africa during the 19th century" in Forster, D. and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), pp. 34–37.</ref><ref>Forster, D. "God's mission in our context, healing and transforming responses" in Forster, D. and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), p. 80.</ref><ref>Grassow, P. "William Shaw" in Forster, D. and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), pp. 13–25.</ref> The largest group was the Wesleyan Methodist Church, but there were a number of others that joined to form the Methodist Church of South Africa, later known as the Methodist Church of Southern Africa.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.methodist.org.za |title=Official website of the Methodist Church of Southern Africa |publisher=Methodist.org.za |access-date=19 April 2013}}</ref>

The Methodist Church of Southern Africa is the largest [[mainline Protestant]] denomination in South Africa{{snd}}7.3% of the South African population recorded their religious affiliation as 'Methodist' in the last national census.<ref>For a discussion of Church membership statistics in South Africa see Forster, D. "God's mission in our context, healing and transforming responses" in Forster, D. and Bentley, W. ''Methodism in Southern Africa: A celebration of Wesleyan Mission''. Kempton Park. AcadSA publishers (2008), pp. 97–98.</ref>