What Bible Do Methodists Use?
This is one of the most common questions people ask about Methodism, and the answer surprises most of them. There is no Methodist Bible. The United Methodist Church says so directly, in its own words, and it also says which translations its Publishing House reaches for when it produces teaching material. Both answers are below, quoted rather than summarised, with links so you can check them yourself.
The Short Answer: There Is Not One
The United Methodist Church answers this question on its own website, and it does not hedge. Its exact words are: “The United Methodist Church does not have an ‘official’ version or translation of the Bible.”
That is not an oversight or an unsettled question. It reflects how authority works in the denomination. As the same page puts it: “Only the General Conference can designate specific ritual resources for the denomination.” The General Conference is the only body that can speak for the whole church, and it has never named a translation.
So if you walk into two United Methodist congregations on the same Sunday, you may well hear two different translations read aloud, and neither is more official than the other.
What the Publishing House Actually Prefers
There is a narrower question underneath the broad one, and it has a specific answer. When The United Methodist Publishing House produces teaching material in English, it works from a short list. The church states that “the Common English Bible (CEB) and the New Revised Standard Version (or the NRSV Updated Edition) are the preferred texts for curriculum”.
Preferred is not the same as required, and the church says so in the same breath: “writers are also free consult other versions or quote from them when doing so strengthens the teaching resource.”
This is the distinction most articles on this subject blur. A translation being preferred for published curriculum is a very different claim from a translation being the Methodist Bible. The first is documented. The second does not exist.
Why More Than One Translation Is the Point
The absence of an official text is not indecision. The church frames it as a positive: “United Methodists affirm the usefulness of a number of translations and versions as being helpful for study, teaching, memorization and other purposes.”
That fits how Methodists have historically read scripture. Comparing translations is a study method in itself. Where two careful translations differ, the difference usually marks a genuine ambiguity in the original language, and noticing it tells you something a single version would have hidden.
In practice this means the useful question is not which Bible is the Methodist one, but which translation suits what you are doing right now - a readable one for reading a whole book through, a more literal one for working closely on a few verses, and a second opinion whenever a passage seems to turn on a single word.
One Complication: Methodist No Longer Means One Church
Everything above is specifically about The United Methodist Church, because that is the body that published it. Methodism is broader than that, and has become more so recently.
The Global Methodist Church launched on 1 May 2022 as a separate, theologically conservative denomination formed largely from congregations leaving the UMC. The historically Black Methodist denominations - the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the AME Zion Church and the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church - are older still and entirely distinct bodies. So are the Free Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Church.
We could not locate an official statement from the Global Methodist Church on Bible translations in its own published documents, so we are not going to guess at one. If you are asking about a specific congregation, the reliable answer is to ask that congregation which translation it reads from. The pew Bible and the preacher text are the real answer for the church you are actually attending.
Key Principles
- ✓The United Methodist Church has no official version or translation of the Bible
- ✓Only the General Conference can designate ritual resources for the denomination
- ✓For UMC curriculum in English, the CEB and NRSV are the preferred texts
- ✓Multiple translations are affirmed for study, teaching and memorization
- ✓Methodism is now several denominations, not one - so the answer depends which
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Start FreeFrequently Asked Questions
Is there an official Methodist Bible?
No. The United Methodist Church states directly that it “does not have an ‘official’ version or translation of the Bible,” and only the General Conference could designate one.
What translation does United Methodist curriculum use?
The Common English Bible (CEB) and the New Revised Standard Version, including the NRSV Updated Edition, are the preferred texts for English-language curriculum from The United Methodist Publishing House. Writers may quote other versions where it strengthens the resource.
Which translation should I read as a Methodist?
Any of them, and ideally more than one. The church explicitly affirms the usefulness of a number of translations for study, teaching and memorization. Comparing two translations on a difficult passage is a study method, not a compromise.
Does the Global Methodist Church use a different Bible?
We could not find an official statement from the Global Methodist Church specifying a translation, so we will not claim one. The Global Methodist Church launched on 1 May 2022 as a separate denomination. Ask the individual congregation which translation it uses.
Sources
Where this page describes what a tradition teaches, it quotes that tradition's own official documents. Every one is linked below so you can read it yourself rather than take our word for it.