The Wesleyan Church, also known as the Wesleyan Methodist Church and Wesleyan Holiness Church depending on the region, is a Methodist Christian denomination in the United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, South Africa, Namibia, Sierra Leone, Liberia, Indonesia, Asia, and Australia. The church is aligned Wesleyan-Holiness movement and has roots in the teachings of John Wesley. It adheres to Wesleyan-Arminian doctrine and is a member of the World Methodist Council.
Virginia Wesleyan University (VWU) is a private university in Virginia Beach, Virginia. The university is nonsectarian but historically affiliated with The United Methodist Church. It enrolls approximately 1,600 students annually in undergraduate, graduate, and online programs, approximately 400 students at LUJ/VWU Global (Japan), and approximately 3,000 non-credit learners in VWU Global Campus. Virginia Wesleyan transitioned from a college to a university in 2017.
Thomas J. Bickerton is an American United Methodist bishop. Bickerton was raised in West Virginia and graduated from West Virginia Wesleyan College in 1980 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Sociology and Psychology. Subsequently, he entered seminary at Duke University Divinity School, completing his Master of Divinity degree in 1983. While attending seminary he served as student pastor following his ordination in 1982 as Deacon. His first appointment out of seminary was to Perry Memorial United Methodist Church, in Shady Spring, West Virginia, in June 1983; he served in that location for six years. In 1985 he was ordained as an Elder by Bishop William Boyd Grove. In 1989, he was appointed to serve Forrest Burdette Memorial United Methodist Church in Hurricane, West Virginia, where he pastored for the ensuing nine years. While in ministry there he also earned his Doctor of Ministry degree at United Theological Seminary, Dayton, Ohio, completing it in 1994. In 2016, Bickerton was transferred to the New York conference of the United Methodist Church where he assumed office as bishop on September 1.
Robert Sheldon Duecker was an American Bishop of the United Methodist Church, elected in 1988.
Gregory Vaughn Palmer is an American Bishop of The United Methodist Church, elected in 2000. He was born and raised in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. His father, Herbert Palmer, is also a United Methodist pastor.
Edwin Charles Boulton was an American Bishop of the United Methodist Church, elected in 1980.
Rueben Philip Job was an American Bishop of the United Methodist Church. Elected in 1984, he served the Iowa episcopal area and retired in 1992.
Clay Foster Lee Jr. is a retired American Bishop of the United Methodist Church, elected in 1988.
John Lowden Knight was a professor, university administrator, and a Methodist theologian. He was President of Nebraska Wesleyan University, Lincoln, Nebraska; the fourth president of Baldwin-Wallace College, Berea, Ohio; and the eighth president of the Wesley Theological Seminary, in Washington, D.C..
Robert Hitchcock Spain is a retired American Bishop of the United Methodist Church, elected in 1988.
An elder, in many Methodist churches, is ordained minister that has the responsibilities to preach and teach, preside at the celebration of the sacraments, administer the church through pastoral guidance, and lead the congregations under their care in service ministry to the world.
Charlene P. Kammerer is an American Bishop in The United Methodist Church, elected and consecrated to the Episcopacy in 1996.
Kevin W. Mannoia is the Pastoral Coach at the Rock Church, San Diego. He is a Professor of Ministry and formerly the University Chaplain at Azusa Pacific University. He was the President of the National Association of Evangelicals from 1999 to 2001. Prior to this, he served as Bishop of the Free Methodist Denomination overseeing the western U.S. and Asia. In addition to his principal role at Azusa Pacific University, he is Founder and Chair of the Wesleyan Holiness Consortium, a contemporary manifestation of the Holiness movement comprising denominations and institutions sharing a common heritage in the Wesleyan and Holiness tradition. He also serves as President of the International Council for Higher Education, an international organization of institutions of higher learning focused upon integrated learning in the Christian tradition.
Hiram Harrison Lowry was an educator, Methodist clergyman and college president in China.
George Whitaker was an American minister and university president in Texas and Oregon. A native of Massachusetts, he served as the president of Wiley College in Texas, along with Willamette University and Portland University in Oregon. A Methodist trained preacher and graduate of Wesleyan University, he also worked as a pastor across the country in the late 19th century, primarily in New England.
Alfred Wesley Gwinn, Jr. is a former residing bishop of the North Carolina Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. He held the office of Bishop of North Carolina from 2004 to 2012. His offices were located in Raleigh, North Carolina.
George Carleton Lacy was an American Methodist missionary and the last Methodist Bishop in Mainland China.
William Franklin Anderson (1860–1944) was an American Methodist pastor, writer, and educator who served as Bishop of Chattanooga, Cincinnati, and Boston and was Acting President of Boston University from January 1, 1925 to May 15, 1926.
Charles Francis Rice was a prominent minister and author. He was a member of the New England Conference of the Methodist Episcopal Church for 50 years, serving as a District Superintendent and as President of the Massachusetts Federation of Churches.
Scott Douglas Miller is an American academic administrator who has served as the fourth president of Virginia Wesleyan University since 2015. He is also an author and career educator.
