United Methodists have access to an abundance of resources to support the educational and spiritual formation work of the local church.
The United Methodist Publishing House
Publishing has been an essential ministry of Methodists from their beginnings. John and Charles Wesley published hymnals, magazines and a whole library of resources to support the educational and formational work of Methodist societies beginning in the 18th century.
The United Methodist Publishing House is the direct descendent of the Wesleys’ publishing operations by and for Methodists. The United Methodist Publishing House operates two websites to support print, downloadable and streamable curriculum resources for Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, youth ministries, confirmation, age-level ministries, Bible studies, book studies and topical studies for small groups. The United Methodist Publishing House receives no support from local church apportionments. Instead, its profits from sales support retirement programs for United Methodist clergy.
Cokesbury.com
Cokesbury, a portmanteau combining the names of American Methodism’s first two bishops (Thomas Coke and Francis Asbury) is the primary, one-stop shop to find curriculum resources developed by United Methodists for United Methodists and endorsed by the denomination's Curriculum Resource Committee.
The Curriculum Resources Committee is a joint project of Discipleship Ministries and The United Methodist Publishing House. Discipleship Ministries staff develops and its board considers and approves the educational approaches and standards for United Methodist educational resources. The United Methodist Publishing House manages contracts with writers and produces the resources once approved.
Curriculum resources endorsed by the Curriculum Resource Committee are designated on the Cokesbury.com website with a red Cross and Flame logo on the upper right corner of each product's image.
To find all CRC-endorsed resources easily, go to https://www.cokesbury.com, click on either "Curriculum" or "Studies" in the top navigation, and under the "More" dropdown menu check “UMC Endorsed.”
If you have any questions as you are reviewing these materials, you may click on the Live Chat icon at the lower right of the screen to connect to a customer service representative who can assist you during regular business hours.
Amplify Media
While Cokesbury.com includes many books and downloadable resources, Amplify Media is the source for hundreds of United Methodist-developed streamable resources available on a subscription basis. Some are intended to support print resources available through Cokesbury.com, while others are full studies in themselves. Costs for the service vary depending on the number of users in your church (fewer than 100 or unlimited) and on the level of services you desire. All subscriptions include the ability for your church to access the entire library of streaming resources available at any time.
Upper Room Ministries
In addition to The United Methodist Publishing House, the other major United Methodist publisher is Upper Room Ministries, creator of The Upper Room daily devotional, celebrating its 90th year in 2025. Upper Room Ministries, while having an historic relationship with Discipleship Ministries, is, like The United Methodist Publishing House, fully supported by its book and resource sales. It receives no support from apportionment dollars.
The Upper Room Store and Resource Library offers a wide variety of books on prayer, Bible Study, and Wesleyan spirituality that can be used by small groups. The Upper Room Store is also the online home for many resources published under the Discipleship Resources brand of Discipleship Ministries, including resources for education, worship, stewardship, local church leadership, age-level ministries, and Lay Servant Ministries.
Resources from other United Methodist general agencies
Unlike The United Methodist Publishing House and Upper Room Ministries, the agencies listed here do receive World Service support for the development of curriculum materials related to their areas of expertise. Some of these are therefore available at no cost, while others require purchase.
As noted above, Discipleship Ministries is responsible for setting the standards for United Methodist approved curriculum. Here are some of the materials Discipleship Ministries offers to provide guidance to congregations, teachers, and the denomination as a whole:
Choosing Curriculum Resources (educational considerations):
UMC Curriculum Checklist (theological considerations):
What Every Child Should Experience (core curriculum for children at various ages):
Two of the most widely used curriculum resources available from the Discipleship Ministries website are the following:
Belong Series: Studies on Baptism, Communion, and Membership Vows
Courageous Conversations: General training and all topics (including resources in Spanish).
The General Commission on Religion and Race has an online resource hub that includes multiple studies, some for individual and some suitable for group use. Group studies include: Voices of the Exiled (studying the Bible from a cross-cultural perspective), Embracing God’s Call: A Bible Study on Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion, Our Hearts Were Strangely Lukewarm (group study of the book of the same name), and a new video-based series called Vital Conversations on Immigration.
The General Commission on the Status and Role of Women resource page includes four group studies: “God of the Bible” (6 sessions on Expansive Language); “Women Called to Ministry” (6 sessions), “The Way of Integrity” (4 sessions on building healthy relationships), and “Rock, Shepherd, Friend” (4 sessions on biblical language for God)
The General Board of Church and Society offers free downloadable “Pages for Progress” book study guides for books on hunger in the United States, the Bible through Palestinian eyes, voting rights, and racial justice, as well as resources for teaching the Social Principles, “Connecting Faith and Justice: Youth Lectionary Curriculum,” and climate action (in conjunction with Blessed Tomorrow).
United Women in Faith, formerly known as United Methodist Women, provides a variety of resources designed for study and use by groups in local churches. While many are specifically aligned to the programmatic emphases of United Women in Faith, the “Spiritual Growth” and “Downloads” navigation items also include curriculum for children’s and adult study groups, including some designed for intergenerational study.
United Methodist Men has three 4-unit small group studies focusing on inviting, grounding, and motivating men in their discipleship to Jesus Christ (“Come to the Water,” “Rooted,” and “A Man Must Stand”).
The General Commission on Archives and History has created a variety of online learning resources to help your congregation understand and live into the fullness of its Wesleyan heritage, including two online courses adaptable for small group study: “Radicle Methodism” (free) and “Splits, Separations and Reconciliations” (cost based on church size).
Higher Education and Ministry Publishing has produced nearly 100 books, many of which may be of interest to an adult study group. Topics include John Wesley’s sermons (in English and Spanish), the role of women in the history of Methodism, and core Wesleyan emphases in church life and structure, among many others.
Global Ministries posts several videos on its website about the work and priorities of Global Ministries and UMCOR that could be a valuable tool in mission education and promotion in your local church.
In addition to resources from United Methodist related entities, some congregations may find it helpful to consider curriculum materials produced by our full communion partners.
When denominations enter into a full communion relationship, they mutually agree that the gospel is rightly preached, the sacraments duly administered, and the ministry is rightly ordered in each other. While every denomination has its own emphases in how it teaches the scriptures, the United Methodist Church is in full communion with, and therefore agrees the gospel is rightly preached in, the Evangelical Lutheran Church of America, the Christian Methodist Episcopal Church, the Uniting Church in Sweden, the Moravian Church, the African Methodist Episcopal Church Zion, the African Methodist Episcopal Church, the African Union Methodist Protestant Church and the Union American Methodist Episcopal Church (the latter two do not produce their own curriculum resources). Since The United Methodist Church has approved a full communion agreement with The Episcopal Church, awaiting approval by their General Convention in 2027, we include resources from their publishing house as well.
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America: Augsburg Fortress
On this full-service website from the third largest Protestant denomination in the United States you will find Sunday School, Vacation Bible School, confirmation, and a variety of Bible study and small group materials and resources for all ages. Sparkhouse Digital is a subscription-based service with unlimited access to additional resources for curriculum for toddlers through high school. Price varies by the number of participants in your congregation.
Christian Methodist Episcopal Church: CME Publishing House
Though more limited in scope than some others, this website includes a range of Sunday School literature for all ages.
Uniting Church in Sweden (Equmeniakyrkan)
This church, formed by the union of United Methodists in Sweden with several other denominations, offers Bible Studies and Sunday School Materials in Swedish.
Moravian Church: Interprovincial Board of Education
Moravian Christian education is historically rooted in home practices for individuals and families. “Moravian Daily Texts” is daily devotional for personal use. “Loving Hearts United” is the denomination’s principal resource for family education and worship. The two can be ordered together as a bundle at a reduced price.
African Methodist Episcopal Church, Zion: AME Zion Publishing House
This denomination offers Sunday School literature that follows the International Sunday School Uniform Lesson Series.
African Methodist Episcopal Church: AMEC Publishing House Sunday School Union
The largest of the historically Black Methodist denominations in the United States provides an order form for curriculum using the International Sunday School Uniform Lessons and other resources.
The Episcopal Church: Church Publishing
Under the Books and Resources tab, select "Curriculum and Faith Formation" for various resources, then "Curriculum" or "Series." Godly Play, a Montessori-like experiential model for children’s education, is the principal set of resources the denomination offers for children’s curriculum.
The range of curriculum resources United Methodists may select from with confidence is remarkable, both those offered by our denomination and those of our full communion partners. While you may find Cokesbury.com covers many of your needs, do not neglect to review the others listed here as you seek to make your own congregation’s Christian formation offerings as faithful, rich and diverse as possible.
Burton Edwards is Lead for Ask The UMC, the information service of United Methodist Communications.
