The African Methodist Episcopal Zion (AME Zion) Church is a historically black Methodist denomination based in America. It was officially formed in 1821 in New York City, but its roots trace back to 1796. Here is an overview of the AME Zion Church and its history, beliefs, and practices:
Origins and History
The AME Zion Church has its origins in the late 18th century. In 1796, a group of black members withdrew from the John Street Methodist Church in New York City due to racism and prejudice they experienced. This group formed the African Methodist Episcopal Church, which was the first independent black denomination in America. One of the key leaders of this new church was James Varick, an abolitionist and the first bishop of the AME Zion church. In 1800, the church established a chapel in Lower Manhattan and dedicated it to Zion to represent their hope and longing for freedom.
In 1820, dissension arose over control and power, resulting in a split in the AME church. On June 21, 1821, a group of ministers and laymen led by James Varick organized a separate denomination known as the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church. Varick was elected the first bishop. The young denomination grew rapidly, especially in the South, establishing new churches and drawing in new members. Zion churches provided spiritual support, education, and political advocacy for the black community.
Over the decades, AME Zion established schools, seminaries, and colleges to promote education and leadership training. Prominent institutions included Livingstone College (1879) in North Carolina and Clinton Junior College (1894) in South Carolina. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the church expanded north with the Great Migration and also began missionary work in Africa. Today, the AME Zion church has over 1.4 million members, over 6,000 ministers, and around 2,000 congregations in over 30 countries worldwide.
Beliefs and Practices
The AME Zion Church professes a basic Protestant Christian theology, similar to other Methodists. Here are some of the key beliefs and practices:
- The Bible – The Bible is viewed as divinely inspired and contains the Christian principles and way of salvation.
- Trinity – God is understood as three persons in one – Father, Son Jesus Christ, and Holy Spirit.
- Salvation – Salvation is achieved through faith in Jesus Christ and his atoning death and resurrection. (John 3:16, Romans 3:24-26)
- Evangelism – Spreading the Gospel and making disciples is a key mission. (Matthew 28:19-20)
- Spirit empowerment – The Holy Spirit empowers believers to live the Christian life. (Acts 1:8)
- Spiritual gifts – Gifts like teaching, preaching, healing are exercised. (1 Corinthians 12:4-11)
- Free will – Humans have free will to make choices, but God is sovereign.
- Communion – Holy Communion is practiced to remember Christ’s death. (Luke 22:19-20)
- Baptism – Baptism is practiced, usually through immersion. (Matthew 28:19)
- Social justice – There is an emphasis on political advocacy and fighting racial inequality.
- Liturgy – Traditional Methodist liturgy, rites, and hymns are used.
In terms of lifestyle practices, the AME Zion church has a high moral standard for its members, prohibiting things like alcohol, tobacco, gambling, and profanity. The church also places a strong emphasis on spiritual disciplines like prayer, Bible study, fasting, and fellowship.
Leadership and Organization
The AME Zion Church has a hierarchical leadership structure. Key positions and bodies include:
- Bishop – Oversees a geographical Episcopal District containing congregations and ministers. Bishops are elected for life terms.
- General Conference – Meets every 4 years and is the main governing body that sets vision, policy, and practice.
- College of Bishops – Provides spiritual leadership and vision. Led by the Senior Bishop.
- Council of Bishops – Manages church operations between General Conferences.
- General Officers – Handles different departments like finance, education, missions.
- Pastors – Lead local congregations and administer the sacraments.
- Presiding Elders – Assist Bishops in supervising groups of churches.
- Stewards, Trustees – Responsible for church property and assisting pastors.
- Class Leaders – Provide spiritual care to members.
- Local Churches – Where members worship and carry out ministry.
- Districts and Conferences – Groupings of churches by geography.
The AME Zion Church has produced influential leaders like civil rights activist Rev. J. Clinton Hoggard. The current leader is Bishop Dennis V. Proctor, who was elected in 2016 as the Senior Bishop.
Worship and Congregational Life
Worship services in the AME Zion church reflect a blend of liturgical tradition and exuberant spiritual expression. Services typically include:
- Singing – a mix of traditional hymns and contemporary gospel songs
- Prayers – opening and closing prayers, plus altar call prayers
- Preaching – a sermon, usually following the lectionary
- Scripture readings
- Offering
- Communion celebration
- Altar call – calling people to salvation or spiritual commitments
- Baptisms
- Special programs – choirs, children, missions
Services tend to be emotional and joyous in style. The AME Zion church fosters strong community life, with many activities outside of Sunday worship. These include Bible studies, prayer meetings, ministry groups, new member classes, youth activities, community service, and events like revivals and conferences.
Missions and Outreach
Missions have been a core emphasis for the AME Zion church since its beginning. The church has an active domestic and foreign missions program. Some key missions-related milestones and facts:
- Sent first missionaries to Africa in the 1880s.
- Established work in Liberia, South Africa, and across central and west Africa.
- Partnered with YWCA and YMCA for decades doing community service.
- By 1946, operated over 300 schools and academies internationally.
- Runs support programs for groups like the homeless, impoverished, recovering addicts.
- Active in disaster relief, poverty relief, medical aid.
The AME Zion Missionary Department continues coordinating missions through programs, projects, education, and short-term trips. Both lay and clergy serve in missions. Key focus areas are evangelism, food sustainability, healthcare, eliminating poverty, and education.
Christian Education
From its earliest days, education has been hugely important to the AME Zion church. It established schools to educate freed slaves and their children. Over the generations, AME Zion has founded and runs several prominent historically black colleges, including:
- Livingstone College (Salisbury, NC). Founded 1879.
- Clinton Junior College (Rock Hill, SC). Founded 1894.
- Lomax-Hannon Junior College (Greenville, AL). Founded 1893.
- Alabama Christian College (Birmingham, AL). Merged with Miles College in 1925.
- Western University (Kansas City, MO). Failed financially 1908.
Beyond colleges, AME Zion runs Sunday Schools at the local church level. There are also youth ministries that incorporate spiritual discipleship and education. And AME Zion has various boards and departments focused wholly on Christian education and development of students and members.
Interfaith Relations
The AME Zion church maintains cordial ties with other Christian denominations and engages in ecumenical work when appropriate. It has historical and present partnerships with groups like:
- African Methodist Episcopal Church – Originally united, split amicably in 1820.
- United Methodist Church – Share Wesleyan theological roots.
- Evangelical Lutheran Church – Partner on some inner-city ministries.
- The Salvation Army – Cooperation on crisis relief and combating racism.
- Baptist groups – Limited partnerships on community outreach.
In terms of interfaith relations with non-Christian groups, this is less of a focus for AME Zion. But the church advocates for religious freedom and tolerance. After 9/11, the AME Zion church condemned anti-Muslim discrimination. Individual churches and members may engage in local interfaith projects as led by the Spirit.
Theology and Social Justice
From its founding, the AME Zion church fused a gospel message with a social justice mission. African Americans were oppressed and marginalized, and the church actively worked to change society in addition to saving souls. This has continued today through adopting progressive stances on race, equality, and political issues. Some examples:
- Leaders like Bishops Hood and Clinton were civil rights pioneers.
- AME Zion churches served as stops along the Underground Railroad.
- Bishops Keeling and Walls marched with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
- Church advocated ending apartheid in South Africa for decades.
- Bishops signed statement supporting Black Lives Matter movement.
- Leaders endorse policies uplifting the poor and oppressed.
This social justice bent is rooted in the church’s theology of imago Dei and Christian responsibility. All humans reflect God’s image, are sacred, and should live freely.Binding people’s freedom due to skin color is a gross injustice and affront to God. As Christians, we are called to take action against these evils just as Jesus did.
Notable Members and Leaders
Many influential African American leaders, thinkers, and pioneers have come out of the AME Zion church. Here are a few notable figures:
- Bishop James Varick – Founding AME Zion Bishop. Dynamic abolitionist leader.
- Harriet Tubman – Famed abolitionist and Underground Railroad conductor.
- Frederick Douglass – Abolitionist, author, and civil rights icon.
- Bishop Alexander Walters – Bishop, educator, and Pan-Africanism leader.
- Bishop William J. Walls – Civil rights crusader who marched with MLK.
- Bishop Joseph Johnson – Longest serving AME Zion bishop (52 years).
- Marian Anderson – Trailblazing African American singer.
- J. Clinton Hoggard – Bishop and chair of NYC’s African American Clergy Organization.
From local pastors to renowned national figures, AME Zion members have made significant contributions in ministry, leadership, education, journalism, business, law, medicine, arts, and more.
Comparison to Other Denominations
The AME Zion church shows similarities to some other Christian groups:
- African Methodist Episcopal (AME) – Originally united, share Methodist roots and black liberation theology.
- United Methodist Church (UMC) – Arminian theology, liturgy, conference system, Wesleyan DNA.
- Christian Methodist Episcopal (CME) – Formed by AME in 1870. Emphasis on education.
- Progressive Baptist – Social justice outlook. Tend to be less dogmatic.
Key differences from other groups include:
- Not as large as major black Baptist denominations.
- More involved in political issues than UMC.
- Does not prohibit women clergy like Southern Baptists.
- Less rigid doctrinal standards than fundamentalist evangelicals.
- More emotional worship style than traditional Protestants.
So while similar to Methodists, AME Zion is differentiated by its African American heritage, more progressive theology, passionate worship, and activist mission.
Current Issues and Trends
Some current issues and trends facing the AME Zion church include:
- Membership decline – After rapid growth, AME Zion has seen a falling membership over the last 50 years.
- Youth disengagement – Struggles to retain youth and young adult members.
- Financial strain – Budget constraints due to lower membership and giving. Some smaller churches closing or merging.
- Leadership gaps – Need for effective leadership development and mentoring of next generation.
- Social relevance – Pressures to stay engaged with pressing social and political issues.
- Inclusion – Balancing traditional identity with welcome and openness to new demographics.
- Aging infrastructure – Like many denominations, faces significant costs to maintain aging buildings.
Despite the challenges, AME Zion sees opportunities to grow impact in urban areas, plant new churches, utilize digital media, and develop young leaders. With over two centuries of resilience, the church continues its mission to spiritually empower and liberation African American communities.
Significant Churches and Institutions
Some of the most prominent and historic AME Zion churches include:
- Mother Zion Church (New York City) – First AME Zion church, founded 1796.
- Metropolitan AME Zion (Washington DC) – Early influential church, founded in the 1820s.
- St. James AME Zion (Pittsburgh, PA) – Large historic church dating to the 1840s.
- Greenwood AME Zion (Tulsa, OK) – Site of 1921 race massacre, now memorial.
- Canaan AME Zion (Harlem, NY) – Hub of activism from 1910s-30s.
- Carter Temple AME Zion (Harlem, NY) – Prominent congregation since the 1930s.
Significant AME Zion institutions include:
- Hood Theological Seminary (Salisbury, NC) – Trains AME Zion clergy.
- Livingstone College (Salisbury, NC) – One of the AME Zion-affiliated HBCUs.
- Lomax-Hannon College (Greenville, AL) – Small bible college.
- Star of Zion Publishing House – Oldest black-owned publisher (since 1878).
- AME Zion Publishing House – Resources and literature publishing arm.
- AME Zion General Conference Headquarters (Charlotte, NC)
Conclusion
For over two hundred years, the African Methodist Episcopal Zion church has provided spiritual support and community leadership for African Americans. Despite racism and injustice, the AME Zion church remains a stalwart voice for hope. At its heart, the AME Zion church aims to create “a spiritual home for all peoples seeking an oasis of social justice and God’s love.” With God’s help, the church continues pursuing this mission in the 21st century.