Wesleyan Churches

A part of the Holiness movement, the Wesleyan Church has never followed the full church calendar. However, aspects of the Christian year have been introduced incrementally in many congregations, enabling them to enjoy some of its benefits without abandoning their nonliturgical worship tradition. For churches in the Holiness movement, the day of Pentecost has special relevance. Yet year after year, and in church after church, Pentecost Sunday would come and go with little or no notice. In the past, only Christmas and Easter were observed with regularity in most Holiness churches. The rest of the Christian year belonged to the mainline denominations, and in its place was an annual calendar of special days more cultural than biblical, such as Mother's Day, Father's Day, Independence Day/Dominion Day, Thanksgiving Day, Homecoming, and, of course, Rally Day. In the Wesleyan Church, that calendar still stands. It probably always will. But an increasing number of congregations are broaden…