Nazarene church history traces back to the Holiness movement and the preaching of John Wesley, the founder of Methodism, who advocated for the doctrine of entire sanctification. [Learn Religions](https://www.learnreligions.com/history-of-the-nazarene-churches-700057) The spiritual vision of early Nazarenes was derived from Wesley's doctrinal core, including justification by grace through faith, sanctification by grace through faith, entire sanctification as an inheritance available to every Christian, and the witness of the Spirit. The Holiness movement arose in the 1830s to promote these doctrines. [Church of the Nazarene](https://nazarene.org/our-history/)
**Founding**
The Church of the Nazarene was founded by former Methodist Phineas F. Bresee, who in 1895 established his first congregation in Los Angeles. [Study.com](https://study.com/academy/lesson/nazarene-beliefs-history.html) The name "Nazarene" is derived from the biblical town of Nazareth, where Jesus was raised. [Study.com](https://study.com/academy/lesson/nazarene-beliefs-history.html)
**The Mergers That Built the Denomination**
The Church of the Nazarene was not the result of a denominational split — it was a coming together of several small associations of churches in the Wesleyan-Holiness tradition. [Snuhome](https://snuhome.org/~hculbert/nhistory.htm)
The first major merger occurred in 1907, uniting the Church of the Nazarene (organized in California in 1895) with the Association of Pentecostal Churches of America (with origins in the northeastern U.S. from 1886 to 1896) to form the Pentecostal Church of the Nazarene. In 1908, the Holiness Church of Christ joined the denomination. [Encyclopedia Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Church-of-the-Nazarene)
The official beginning as a national church occurred in Pilot Point, Texas, in 1908. [Texas State Historical Association](https://www.tshaonline.org/handbook/entries/church-of-the-nazarene)
**The "Pentecostal" Name Change**
The term "Pentecostal," increasingly associated with speaking in tongues — a practice foreign to the Nazarenes — was dropped from the church's name in 1919. [Encyclopedia Britannica](https://www.britannica.com/topic/Church-of-the-Nazarene)
**Continued Growth**
Through the years, other groups united with the Nazarenes: The Pentecostal Mission (1915), Pentecostal Church of Scotland (1915), Laymen's Holiness Association (1922), International Holiness Mission (1952), Calvary Holiness Church (1955), and others. Missionary work took high priority, with early work done in Cape Verde Islands, India, Japan, South Africa, and Central America. [Learn Religions](https://www.learnreligions.com/history-of-the-nazarene-churches-700057)
**Today**
The Church of the Nazarene is the largest Wesleyan-Holiness denomination in the world, with a global mission to "make disciples of all nations." [Christianity.com](https://www.christianity.com/church/denominations/church-of-the-nazarene-10-things-to-know-about-their-history-and-beliefs.html) Today it has 2.5 million members in more than 30,000 congregations across 162 areas of the world, headquartered in Lenexa, Kansas. [Learn Religions](https://www.learnreligions.com/history-of-the-nazarene-churches-700057)
It's a rich heritage — deeply rooted in Wesleyan theology and the belief that Christians can live in genuine holiness through the work of the Holy Spirit.