What to expect at a United Methodist church

The United Methodist Church is a global denomination organised into conferences and led by bishops, in the Wesleyan tradition. North Carolina has two UMC conferences, and the denomination here changed substantially between 2022 and 2024, when a large number of congregations voted to disaffiliate — most of them joining the new Global Methodist Church. Any church list assembled before 2024 is unreliable on this point, which is why every listing on this site carries the date it was last checked.

• A structured service following an order of worship, usually printed in a bulletin you're handed at the door.
• Hymns, often with an organ or piano and a choir. Contemporary services exist, frequently at a separate time.
• A sermon of 15 to 25 minutes — shorter than in most Baptist or non-denominational churches.
• Communion on the first Sunday of the month in most congregations, and an open table: you do not need to be a member or a Methodist to receive it.

Read the full United Methodist guide — beliefs, worship, and common questions →