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The AME Zion Church grew, reaching a membership of 300,000 by 1884 (it has over 1.2 million members today). It also established an identity as the "Freedom Church" because its members included abolition and human rights activists Sojourner Truth, Harriet Tubman, and Frederick Douglass.

Even as late as 1884, Bishop Moore seemed to believe the Zion-Methodist Episcopal split might be healed. In the line following the excerpt above, he wrote, "When we return [to the mother church] we do not wish to be under their government, but an integral part of it." But while Methodist churches have seen some mergers and reunfications, including the creation of the United Methodist Church in 1968, this one is highly unlikely. John Wesley was barely able to keep Methodists within the Church of England during his lifetime; it is hard to imagine them all belonging to the same church again.

Elesha Coffman is associate editor of Christian History.

Copyright © 2001 Christianity Today. Click for reprint information.

More Christian History, including a listing of events that occurred this week in the church's past, is available at ChristianHistory.net. Subscriptions to the quarterly print magazine are also available.

The full text of Bishop Moore's History of the A.M.E. Zion Church in America is available from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Blackandchristian.com offers a Zion church timeline.

Christian History focused on African-American Christianity before the Civil War in Issue 62: Bound for Canaan. Other Christian History articles of interest for Black History Month include William Wilberforce & the Abolition of the Slave Trade, Spiritual Awakenings in North America (not online), Christianity and the Civil War (not online).

Christian History Corner appears every Friday at ChristianityToday.com. Previous Christian History Corners include:

Innovating with the Flow | John and Charles Wesley harnessed the momentum of their time. (Feb. 9, 2000)

Dangerous Myth-Conceptions | A new book traces the origins of historical misunderstandings about Christianity. (Feb. 2, 2001)

1,700 Years of Faith | Armenian Christians celebrate their heritage and look to their future. (Jan. 26, 2001)

This Is Your Life | Exploring the "well-worn sawdust trail" between fundamentalists and evangelicals. (Jan. 19, 2000)

The Heavens Declare the Glory of God | Like Paul, Galileo believed that God made himself known through creation. (Jan. 5, 2000)

Festive Flora | Deck the halls with boughs of pagan significance, falalalala, lalalala. (Dec. 22, 2000)

Peace on Earth? | Christmas Carols and the Civil War (Dec. 15, 2000)

Why December 25? | The month and day of Christ's birth have been hotly disputed for centuries. (Dec. 8, 2000)

The Book Everyone Should Buy | Or at least know about, anyway. (Dec. 1, 2000)

The Saga of St. Chad | A tale of political maneuvers and positioning. Sound familiar? (Nov. 22, 2000)

Accidental Radical | Jan Hus's ideas seem normal now, but in his age they were revolutionary enough to merit death. (November 17, 2000)

Top 10 Reasons to Read This Book | A list of Christian books that changed the century introduces authors and their impact on evangelicalism. (Nov. 10, 2000)

The Un-Denomination | The Southern Baptist Convention has been historically Un-Conventional. (Nov. 3, 2000)

Soul Crisis at the Conference on Faith and History | Academics gather asking questions like, "What does 'Christian history' actually mean?" (Oct. 27, 2000)

Case of the Missing Relic | A piece of Jesus' cross is stolen from a Toronto cathedral—or is it? (Oct. 20, 2000)

The Politicians' Patron | Is Thomas More a saintly model? (Oct. 13, 2000)

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February (Web-only) 2001, Vol. 45