On April 23, 1968, The United Methodist Church was created when Bishop Reuben H. Mueller, representing The Evangelical United Brethren Church, and Bishop Lloyd C. Wicke of The Methodist Church joined hands at the constituting General Conference in Dallas, Texas. With the words, "Lord of the Church, we are united in Thee, in Thy Church and now in The United Methodist Church," the new denomination was given birth by two churches that had distinguished histories and influential ministries in various parts of the world.

Theological traditions steeped in the Protestant Reformation and Wesleyanism, similar ecclesiastical structures, and relationships that dated back almost two hundred years facilitated the union. In the Evangelical United Brethren heritage, for example, Philip William Otterbein, the principal founder of the United Brethren in Christ, assisted in the ordination of Francis Asbury to the superintendency of American Methodist work. Jacob Albright, through whose religious experience and leadership the Evangelical Association was begun, was nurtured in a Methodist class meeting following his conversion.

Read more about the history of The United Methodist Church by year.

The Northern Illinois Conference (NIC) is one of 63 Annual Conferences in the United Methodist Church. Bordered by the Mississippi River on the west, Lake Michigan on the east, Wisconsin on the north, and I-80 and the Illinois River on the south, the Northern Illinois Conference encompasses 19 counties in the northern third of the state. The Conference includes 400 local churches with approximately 125,000 members. Central and southern Illinois are served by the Illinois Great Rivers Conference.

The churches of the NIC are led by Bishop Hee-Soo Jung and divided into six districts, each headed by a district superintendent.

Offices