The Band Meeting

The band meeting, a proven discipleship model for growing in love through the accountability of small, same-gender groups, was one of the defining characteristics of the Methodist movement started by John Wesley in the mid-1700s. In reflection on Wesley’s class meeting and band meeting structure, George Whitfield once said, “My Brother Wesley acted wisely, the souls that were awakened under his ministry he joined in class, and thus preserved the fruits of his labor. This I neglected, and my people are a rope of sand.

In The Band Meeting, Kevin Watson and Scott Kisker give an overview of the richness of this early tradition and introduce a practical approach for growing toward an authentic, transformation-oriented small group experience.

About the Authors

Kevin M. Watson is a Pastor and the Senior Director of Christian Formation at Asbury Church in Tulsa, OK. He is also on the faculty at Asbury Theological Seminary, anchoring the Seminary’s Tulsa Extension Site. He has written extensively on discipleship and formation in the Wesleyan tradition, including the class and band meetings. His most recent book, Doctrine, Spirit, and Discipline, describes the purpose of the Wesleyan tradition and the struggle to maintain its identity in the United States.

Scott Kisker (PhD) is Professor of the History of Christianity at United Theological Seminary and an elder in the Iowa Annual Conference. Prior to his post at United Theological Seminary, he was Professor of History of Christianity at Wesley Theological Seminary as well as Wesley’s Director of the Course of Study Program.