Methodist Church of Mexico

(Iglesia Metodista de México, IMM)
Methodist work in Mexico began in 1871 when a young Mexican was converted to Methodism in the USA and returned to his country to share his new faith. The Methodist Episcopal Church, South, and the Methodist Episcopal Church followed in 1873, sending missionaries to explore possibilities and establish congregations. In 1930 Methodism in Mexico became united and the Methodist Church in Mexico was born as an autonomous church. Its bishops are elected every four years. At present the church has six episcopal areas covering 28 of the 30 states of the nation and the federal district. It has a university, two theological seminaries, 150 centres of theological study by extension, 12 schools from nursery to high school, four social centres, two hospitals, two clinics, two orphanages, two homes for the elderly, and a girls' hostel.