For the 50 year anniversary of the inauguration of Catholic-Methodist dialogue, Pope Francis held a meeting with these leaders from the World Methodist Council.
In the Vatican, the secretary general, Bishop Ivan Abrahams, greeted the pope with these words.
'As the Council, we concluded that to be one is about life, it is about being together. It is about finding new ways forward and contributing to real hope for humanity.'
Pope Francis explained that these past 50 years have allowed Catholics and Methodists to overcome many barriers.
POPE FRANCIS
'We are grateful to God because we can say that, in certain sense, we too have been freed from the slavery of estrangement and mutual suspicion.'
The pope reminded them that there is a fraternity between Methodists and Catholics thanks to the virtue of the one baptism. He also invited them to deepen their unity to become a sign of reconciliation for the world.
