UCCP History

The Evangelical Church

Presbyterian missionaries in the Philippines in April 1901 invited missionaries of other evangelical churches to a conference to discuss the possibility of working together in the proclamation of the gospel of faith alone as the only way of salvation for Filipino Catholics, Muslims and pagans. Representatives included those from the Methodist Episcopal Church 1, the United Brethren in Christ (UBC) 2, the Northern Baptist Church 3, the Christian and Missionary Alliance, the Free Methodist Church, the British and Foreign Bible Society, the American Bible Society, and the Presbyterian Church.


The Evangelical Union was then formed on April 26, 1901. The evangelical churches agreed to call themselves “The Evangelical Church” (with the original denomination name in parenthesis below it). From 1898 to 1905 these are the mission churches joining in the agreement:

Methodists (1898, most of lowland Luzon and north of Manila)

Presbyterians (1899, Bicol, Southern Tagalog area and some parts of Central and Western Visayas)

Baptists (1900, Western Visayas)

United Brethren (1901, Mountain Province and La Union)

Christian Churches and Churches of Christ/Disciples of Christ (1901, Ilocos, Abra, and Tagalog towns)

Congregationalists (1902, Mindanao except for the western end)
Christian and Missionary Alliance (1902, Western Mindanao and Sulu Archipelago)
Manila was opened to all denominations and mission agencies.[6] The Seventh-day Adventist Church and Protestant Episcopals did not join because they wanted to go to all parts of the archipelago.[7]

^1 Currently known as The United Methodist Church since 1968 when Evangelical United Brethren merged with The Methodist Church
^2 Currently known as The United Methodist Church since 1968 when the Evangelical Church merged with the United Brethren and later merged with The Methodist Church
^3 Currently known as the Convention of Philippine Baptist Churches, Inc.