Ekyaschool at 04:58, 25 March 2026

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{{short description|British mission society}}
{{EngvarB|date=April 2014}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=April 2014}}
{{Infobox organization
| name = Church Mission Society
| abbreviation = CMS
| formation = {{launch date and age|12 April 1799}}
| headquarters = [[Oxford]], England
| logo = Church Mission Society logo.png
| image =
| caption =
| type = [[Evangelical Anglicanism]]<br />[[Ecumenism]]<br />[[Protestant missionary]]<br />[[British Commonwealth]]
| founder = [[Clapham Sect]]
| leader_title = Chief Executive Officer
| leader_name = Alastair Bateman from May 2019
| website = {{URL|https://churchmissionsociety.org|Official website}}
}}

The '''Church Mission Society''' ('''CMS'''), formerly known as the '''Church Missionary Society''',<ref>{{cite web |title=Church Missionary Society Archive – General Introduction and Guide to the Archive |url=http://www.ampltd.co.uk/digital_guides/church_missionary_society_archive_general/editorial%20introduction%20by%20rosemary%20keen.aspx |access-date=2020-12-26|website=www.ampltd.co.uk}}</ref> is a British [[Anglicanism|Anglican]] [[Christian mission|mission]] society working internationally with Christians. CMS was founded in 1799,<ref name="I1">{{cite journal |last=Mounstephen |first=Philip |title=Teapots and DNA: The Foundations of CMS |url=http://www.nzcms.org.nz/teapots-and-dna-the-foundations-of-cms-intermission-issue-22/ |year=2015 |journal=Intermission |volume=22}}</ref><ref name="CV1">{{cite book |title=The Centenary Volume of the Church Missionary Society for Africa and the East 1799–1899 |url=https://ecommons.cornell.edu/bitstream/1813/29805/1/Z163_02_0540.pdf |year=1902 |publisher= London: Church Missionary Society, digital publication: Cornell University}}</ref> and has given its name "CMS" to a number of daughter organisations around the world, including Australia and New Zealand, which have now become independent.

==History==
===Foundation===
[[File:Church Missionary Society 1799.gif|thumb|left|The logo of Church Missionary Society in 1799]]
The original proposal for the mission came from [[Charles Grant (British East India Company)|Charles Grant]] and [[George Udny (planter)|George Udny]] of the [[East India Company]] and [[David Brown (East India Company chaplain)|David Brown]], of [[Calcutta]], who sent a proposal in 1787 to [[William Wilberforce]], then a young member of [[parliament]], and [[Charles Simeon]], a young [[clergy]]man at [[Cambridge University]].<ref name="CMSatlasHviii">{{cite web|title= The Church Missionary Atlas (Church Missionary Society)|pages= 210–219|date= 1896| url= http://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Details/CMS_OX_Atlas_01|access-date=19 October 2015 | publisher = [[Adam Matthew Digital]]}}</ref><ref> Hans J. Hillerbrand, ''Encyclopedia of Protestantism: 4-volume Set'', Routledge, UK, 2004, p. 1390</ref>

The ''Society for Missions to Africa and the East'' (as the society was first called) was founded on 12 April 1799 at a meeting of the [[Eclectic Society (Christian)|Eclectic Society]], supported by members of the [[Clapham Sect]], a group of activist [[Anglicanism|Anglicans]] who met under the guidance of [[John Venn (priest)|John Venn]], the Rector of [[Clapham]].<ref name="I1"/> Their number included [[Charles Simeon]], [[Basil Woodd]],<ref name="CMSatlasHviii"/><ref name="Feb1874">{{cite web |title= The Church Missionary Gleaner, February 1874|work= The Origin of the Church Missionary Society|access-date=24 October 2015 |url= http://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Images/CMS_OX_Gleaner_1874_02/0| publisher = [[Adam Matthew Digital]]}}</ref> [[Henry Thornton (reformer)|Henry Thornton]], [[Thomas Babington]]<ref>{{ODNBweb|id=75363|title=Babington, Thomas|first=Nigel|last=Aston}}</ref> and [[William Wilberforce]]. Wilberforce was asked to be the first president of the society, but he declined to take on this role and became a vice-president. The [[treasurer]] was [[Henry Thornton (reformer)|Henry Thornton]] and the founding secretary was [[Thomas Scott (commentator)|Thomas Scott]],<ref name="Aug1867">{{cite web |title= The Church Missionary Gleaner, August 1867|work= The Church Missionary Society (From the "American Church Missionary Register")|access-date=24 October 2015 |url= http://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Images/CMS_OX_Gleaner_1867_08/5| publisher = [[Adam Matthew Digital]]}}</ref> a biblical commentator. Many of the founders were also involved in creating the [[Sierra Leone Company]] and the [[Society for the Education of Africans]].<ref name="African academy">{{cite journal|last1=Mouser|first1=Bruce|title=African academy 1799–1806|journal=History of Education|date=2004|volume=33|issue=1|doi=10.1080/00467600410001648797|s2cid=144855979}}</ref>

The first [[Missionary|missionaries]] went out in 1804. They came from the [[Evangelical-Lutheran Church in Württemberg]] and had trained at the Berlin [[Seminary]]. The name Church Missionary Society began to be used and in 1812 the society was renamed ''The Church Missionary Society''.<ref name="CMSatlasHviii"/>

In 1829, the CMS began to send medical personnel as missionaries. Initially to care for the mission staff, these missionaries could also care for the physical well-being of local populations. Dr. [[Henry Graham (Medical missionary)|Henry Graham]] was the first CMS Medical missionary when he was sent to [[Sierra Leone]] and shifted the focus from care of the mission staff to assistance for local people.<ref>{{cite book |title=Register of Missionaries (Clerical, Lay, and Female), and Native Clergy from 1804-1894 |publisher=Church Missionary Society |url=http://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk./Documents/Details/CMS_OX_Register_01 |access-date=3 January 2021 |format=Available through: Adam Matthew, Marlborough, Church Missionary Society Periodicals}}</ref><ref name=GrahamPapers>{{Cite web|url=https://www.amscholar.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Details/CMS_IV_Part2_Reel36_Vol5|title=West Africa (Sierra Leone): Original papers, 1820-1869 - AM Scholar - Adam Matthew Digital|website=www.amscholar.amdigital.co.uk}}</ref>

===Training===
During the late 19th and early 20th century, the CMS maintained a training program for women at Kennaway Hall at the former "Willows" estate where the training program started.<ref>{{cite web |last1=Whitehead |first1=JAck |title=The March of Bricks and Mortar into Stoke Newington |url=https://www.locallocalhistory.co.uk/willows/final1/page1.htm |access-date=21 December 2022}}</ref> Kennaway Hall was the Church Missionary Society training center for female missionaries.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kennaway Hall: By One Who is There |url=https://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Details/CMS_OX_Outlook_1922_05 |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk}}</ref> The training center was called "The Willows", under the Mildmay Trustees, until having been bought by the Church Missionary Society in 1891.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Kenya Mission: Precis book, 1907-1918 |url=https://www.login.amdigital.co.uk/Login.aspx?sessionID=j1y1nwskjbz5siqourtmtxvt&returnURL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.amscholar.amdigital.co.uk%2fDocuments%2fSearchDetails%2fCMS_IV_Part18_Reel386_Vol1&login=http://www.amscholar.amdigital.co.uk/Login&cookiesTesting=true |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=www.login.amdigital.co.uk}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Biographies |url=https://www.login.amdigital.co.uk/Login.aspx?sessionID=4cbky2ks1m3gbnnz3iamadvd&returnURL=http%3a%2f%2fwww.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk%2fExplore%2fBiographies&login=http://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Login&cookiesTesting=true |access-date=2022-12-12 |website=www.login.amdigital.co.uk}}</ref> [[Elizabeth Mary Wells]] took over the presidency in 1918 of Kennaway Hall.<ref>{{Cite web |title=02 Sep 1918, The Church Missionary Gleaner - Church Missionary Society Periodicals - Adam Matthew Digital |url=https://www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk/Documents/Details/CMS_OX_Gleaner_1918_08 |access-date=2022-12-15 |website=www.churchmissionarysociety.amdigital.co.uk}}</ref>

===20th century===
{{more citations needed section|date=February 2026}}
During the early 20th century, the society's theology moved in a more [[Liberal Christianity|liberal]] direction under the leadership of [[Eugene Stock]].<ref>{{Harvnb|Stock|1923}}.<br />The more liberal CMS position may be compared with the attitude expressed in the preface to its 1904 ''English–Kikuyu Vocabulary'', whose author, CMS member {{Nowrap|A. W. McGregor}}, complained of the difficulty in obtaining information about Kikuyu from "very unwilling and unintelligent natives" ({{Harvnb|McGregor|1904|p=iii}}).</ref> There was considerable debate over the possible introduction of a doctrinal test for missionaries, which advocates claimed would restore the society's original evangelical theology. In 1922, the society split, with the liberal evangelicals remaining in control of CMS headquarters, whilst conservative evangelicals established the [[Bible Churchmen's Missionary Society]] (BCMS, now [[Crosslinks]]).

In 1957 the [[Church of England Zenana Missionary Society]] was absorbed into the CMS.

Notable general secretaries of the society later in the 20th century were [[Max Alexander Cunningham Warren|Max Warren]] and [[John Vernon Taylor]]. The first woman president of the CMS, [[Diana Reader Harris]] (serving 1969–1982), was instrumental in persuading the society to back the 1980 ''[[Brandt Report]]'' on bridging the [[North–South divide in the World|North-South divide]]. In the 1990s CMS appointed its first non-British general secretary, [[Michael Nazir-Ali]], who later became Bishop of Rochester in the [[Church of England]], and its first women general secretary, [[Diana Witts]]. [[Gillian Joynson-Hicks]] was its president from 1998 to 2007.

In 1995 the name was changed to the '''Church Mission Society'''.

At the end of the 20th century there was a significant swing back to the [[Evangelical]] position, probably in part due to a review in 1999 at the anniversary and also due to the re-integration of [[Mid Africa Ministry]] (formerly the [[Ruanda Mission]]). The position of CMS is now that of an [[ecumenical]] Evangelical society.

===21st century===
{{more citations needed section|date=February 2026}}
In 2004 CMS was instrumental in bringing together a number of [[Anglican]] and, later, some [[Protestant]] mission agencies to form Faith2Share, an international network of mission agencies.

In June 2007, CMS in Britain moved the administrative office out of London for the first time. It is now based in east Oxford.

In 2008, CMS was acknowledged as a mission community by the Advisory Council on the Relations of Bishops and Religious Communities of the Church of England. It currently has approximately 2,800 members who commit to seven promises, aspiring to live a lifestyle shaped by mission.

In 2010 CMS integrated with the [[South American Mission Society]] (SAMS).

In 2010 Church Mission Society launched the Pioneer Mission Leadership Training programme, providing leadership training for both lay people and those preparing for ordination as pioneer ministers. It is accredited by Durham University as part of the Church of England's [https://www.churchofengland.org/clergy-office-holders/ministry/ministerial-education-and-development/common-awards-in-theology,-ministry-and-mission.aspx Common Awards]. In 2015 there were 70 students on the course, studying at certificate, diploma and MA level.

In October 2012, [[Philip Mounstephen]] became the Executive Leader of the Church Mission Society.<ref>{{cite web|title=Executive leader: Philip Mounstephen|url=http://www.churchmissionsociety.org/executive-leader|website=Church Mission Society|access-date=13 July 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170726191052/http://www.churchmissionsociety.org/executive-leader|archive-date=26 July 2017|url-status=dead}}</ref>

On 31 January 2016 Church Mission Society had 151 [[missionary|mission partners]] in 30 countries and 62 local partners in 26 countries (this programme supports local mission leaders in Asia, Africa and South America in "pioneer settings"<ref name=":0">Church Mission Society Report and Accounts for the year ended 31 January 2016.</ref>) serving in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. In addition, 127 mission associates (affiliated to Church Mission Society but not employed or financially supported through CMS) and 16 short-termers. In 2015–16, Church Mission Society had a budget of £6.8 million, drawn primarily from donations by individuals and parishes, supplemented by historic investments.<ref name=":0" />

The Church Mission Society Archive is housed at the [[University of Birmingham]] Special Collections.

'''In Australia''', the society operates on two levels: firstly, at a national/federal level as 'CMS Australia', training and supporting various missionaries; and secondly, at a state level with 6 Branches, recruiting missionaries and liaising with supporters and support churches.<ref>{{Cite web|title=About CMS Australia|url=https://www.cms.org.au/about-us/about-cms-australia/|access-date=2020-10-16|website=CMS Australia|language=en-AU}}</ref>

==Leadership==
{{unsourced section|date=February 2026}}
'''Secretary or Honorary Secretary'''
* [[Thomas Scott (commentator)|Thomas Scott]] (1799–1802)
* [[Josiah Pratt]] (1802–1824)
* [[Edward Bickersteth (priest)|Edward Bickersteth]] (1824–1831)
*[[Charles Hodgson (missionary)|Charles Hodgson]] (1832-
* [[Henry Venn (Church Missionary Society)|Henry Venn]] (1841–1872)
* Henry Wright (1872–1880)
* Frederic Wigram (1880–1895)
* Henry E. Fox (from 1895)
{{expand list|date=July 2018}}

'''President'''
* [[James Gambier, 1st Baron Gambier|Admiral Gambier]] (first President, 1812–1834)
* [[Henry Pelham, 3rd Earl of Chichester]] (1834–1886)
* Captain the Hon. Francis Maude (1886–1887)
* [[Sir John Kennaway, 3rd Baronet]] (1887–1919)
* 1969 to 1982: [[Diana Reader Harris]]
* 1998 to 2007: [[Gillian Joynson-Hicks]]
{{expand list|date=July 2018}}

=== CEO (with title changes) ===
'''General Secretary'''
* 1942 to 1963: [[Max Alexander Cunningham Warren|Max Warren]]
* 1963 to 1973: [[John Taylor (bishop of Winchester)|John Taylor]]
* 1975 to 1985: [[Simon Barrington-Ward]]
* 1989 to 1994: [[Michael Nazir-Ali]]
* 1995 to 2000: Diana Witts
* 2000 to 2011: [[Tim Dakin]]

'''Executive Leader'''
* October 2012 to 2018: [[Philip Mounstephen]]

'''Chief Executive Officer'''
* From May 2019: Alastair Bateman

=== Clinical leadership ===
'''Medical Superintendent'''
*[[Harold Gilbee Anderson]] (1938-1959)
{{expand list|date=January 2024}}

==See also==
* [[Christian mission]]
* [[Timeline of Christian missions]]
* [[Church Missionary Society in the Middle East and North Africa]]
* [[Church Missionary Society in Africa]]
* [[Church Missionary Society in India]]
* [[Church Missionary Society in China]]

==Notes==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{refbegin}}
* Groten, Miel. “Gates to the ‘Heathen World.’” in ''The Architecture of Empire in Modern Europe: Space, Place, and the Construction of an Imperial Environment, 1860-1960'' (Amsterdam University Press, 2022), pp. 41–84. [https://doi.org/10.2307/j.ctv2zjz71m.6 online in JSTOR]

* {{cite book |last1=Harris |first1=John W. |title=We wish we'd done more: Ninety years of CMS and Aboriginal issues in north Australia |date=1998 |publisher=Openbook Publishers |location=Adelaide |isbn=0859108961 |url={{GBurl|srKUOwAACAAJ}}}}
* Hewitt, Gordon, ''The Problems of Success, A History of the Church Missionary Society 1910–1942'', Vol I (1971) ''In Tropical Africa. The Middle East. At Home'' {{ISBN|0-334-00252-4}}; Vol II (1977)''Asia Overseas Partners'' {{ISBN|0-334-01313-5}}
* {{Cite book
|last= McGregor |first= A. W. |year= 1904
|title= English–Kikuyu Vocabulary
|location= London |publisher= [[Society for Promoting Christian Knowledge]]
|ol= 23468442M }}
*{{Cite book
| last =Murray | first =Jocelyn | year =1985
| title =Proclaim the Good News. A Short History of the Church Missionary Society
| location =London | publisher =Hodder & Stoughton
| isbn =0-340-34501-2
}}.
* Porter, Andrew, ed. '' The Imperial Horizons of British Protestant Missions, 1880–1914''. (2003).

*{{Cite book
| last =Stock
| first =Eugene
| author-link =Eugene Stock
| year =1899–1916
| title =The History of the Church Missionary Society: Its Environment, Its Men, and Its Work
| volume =1–4
| location =London
| publisher =CMS
}}.
*{{Cite book |last=Stock |first=Eugene |year=1923 |title=The Recent Controversy in the C.M.S. |edition=Reprinted from the ''Church Missionary Review'' |location=London |publisher=CMS}}.
* Ward, Kevin, and Brian Stanley, eds. ''The Church Mission Society and World Christianity, 1799-1999'' (Eerdmans, 2000). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/The_Church_Mission_Society_and_World_Chr/r7UlAQAAIAAJ?hl=en&gbpv=1&bsq=intitle:The+intitle:Church+intitle:Mission+intitle:Society+intitle:and+intitle:World+intitle:Christianity&dq=intitle:The+intitle:Church+intitle:Mission+intitle:Society+intitle:and+intitle:World+intitle:Christianity&printsec=frontcover online]
* Ward, Kevin. ''A History of Global Anglicanism'' (Cambridge University Press, 2006). [https://www.google.com/books/edition/A_History_of_Global_Anglicanism/hQwU04vx98MC?hl=en&gbpv=1&dq=A++History+of+Global+Anglicanism&printsec=frontcover online]
* ''Missionary Register''; containing an abstract of the principal missionary and bible societies throughout the world. From 1816, containing the principal transactions of the various institutions for propagating the gospel with the proceedings at large of the Church Missionary Society. They were published from 1813 to 1855 by L. B. Seeley & Sons, London
:Some are online readable and downloadable at Google Books; [https://books.google.com/books?id=NtsNAAAAQAAJ 1814], [https://books.google.com/books?id=VtsNAAAAQAAJ 1815], [https://books.google.com/books?id=QbIPAAAAIAAJ 1822], [https://books.google.com/books?id=7c0nAAAAYAAJ 1823], [https://books.google.com/books?id=RUUUAAAAYAAJ 1826], [https://books.google.com/books?id=SgIbAAAAMAAJ 1828], [https://books.google.com/books?id=zkYUAAAAYAAJ 1829], [https://books.google.com/books?id=kUQUAAAAYAAJ 1831], [https://books.google.com/books?id=HykPAAAAIAAJ 1834], [https://books.google.com/books?id=5MEPAAAAIAAJ 1846].
{{refend}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
*[http://churchmissionsociety.org/ Church Mission Society]
*[http://www.cms.org.au/ CMS Australia]
*[http://www.nzcms.org.nz/ New Zealand CMS]
*[http://www.cmsireland.org/ CMS Ireland]

{{Protestant missions to Africa}}
{{Protestant missions to India}}
{{Protestant missions to Pacific Islands}}
{{Protestant missions to the Middle East}}
{{Protestant missions to Southeast Asia}}
{{Authority control}}

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[[Category:Religious organizations established in 1799]]
[[Category:Church of England missions]]
[[Category:Church of England missionary societies]]
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[[Category:Anglican organizations established in the 18th century]]
[[Category:1799 establishments in Great Britain]]
[[Category:Christian missionary societies]]

Church Mission Society - Revision history

Ekyaschool at 04:58, 25 March 2026