Abstract
This study compares the worldwide growth of The United Methodist Church to that of its “sister” denominations such as the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the Anglican Church, and the Church of the Nazarene. Among the key findings of the study is the fact that since 2000, on a country-by-country basis, United Methodism generally has been growing more slowly than its sister denominations. The authors explore the significance of their findings, and identify the need for a robust missiological research agenda to understand the reasons behind the relatively low growth rates of United Methodism worldwide. They suggest several avenues for this future research and speculate about possible sociological, structural, ecclesiological, and cultural explanations for the phenomenon.
