Cote d'Ivoire denomination joins United Methodist Church

The United Methodist Church grew by about one million members when delegates unexpectedly received a West African "mission" into full membership of the United Methodist Church. The new members formerly constituted the autonomous Protestant Methodist Church of Cote d'Ivoire (Ivory Coast).

"For us it is a moment of great joy," said the Rev. Benjamin Boni, leader of the Cote d'Ivoire church, who expressed his gratitude to God, the United Methodist bishops, and General Conference.

"We want to be part of the mission of Jesus Christ for the salvation of the world," Boni told the delegates. "May the Lord help us to be bearers of light to the whole world."

The church in Cote d'Ivoire has been in existence since 1924, Boni explained. In 1985, it left the British Methodist Church to become autonomous. "We wanted to be part of a more global environment, which is the United Methodist Church," Boni said through a French translator.

The Cote d'Ivoire members voted unanimously to join the United Methodist Church. Before the addition of the Cote d'Ivoire, the United Methodist Church's worldwide membership was about 10 million, including about 1.4 million in Africa, Asia, and Europe.

The new conference in Cote d'Ivoire has five districts, two of which are missionary districts. Women and children make up a majority of its membership, said Boni, who explained that rumors about civil unrest in his nation should not be attributed to religious differences.

In Cote d'Ivoire, he explained, one-third of the population is Muslim, one-third is Christian and one-third is known as animist, a combination of several religions. "There is no religious problem," Boni said. "We collaborate freely."

Elliott Wright and Rena Yocum are staff members of the Board of Global Ministries. Melissa Lauber, with the Baltimore-Washington Annual Conference staff, contributed to this article.