Friday, September 15, 2023
What's Happening in The UMC, part one
“What’s Happening in the UMC?” part one
An information and discussion session led by PK in
the Epworth UMC Ripley Fellowship Hall on Sunday evening Sept. 10, 2023 @ 6:30pm.
(Anticipating part two Oct 22, 2023)
The paragraphs are numbered for convenient discussion)
What this is, and what this is not.
- This is a presentation of how I see What’s been happening in The UMC for the
past few years.
NOT a vote about whether to stay in the UMC or leave the UMC.
We could decide those are things we wish to discuss further, but by no means
are we informed enough or ready to make any such decision today.
- This is a presentation of how I see What’s been happening
in The UMC for the past few years.
NOT me trying to make you agree with me,
rather me trying to give an accurate and hopefully at least relatively unbiased
description of lay of the land.
ALSO not a theological address of the issues: seek to understand what’s going
on so we’re better equipped to look at things theologically.
- I said at my introduction that I am committed to The
United Methodist Church and it is my hope that you are as well.
- Also this is not a cop-out: like life, things are messy
on multiple levels. There are a number of areas where things simply are not
ideal, and there are places where God-loving Bible-believing disciples come to
different and opposing conclusions. It’s my goal to have a respectful
presentation and open the way for honest and potentially difficult dialogue.
There are worthwhile things to share about the church
through the twentyodd decades before the current day, but I shall begin with a
basic timeline of The UMC.
1. The UMC was formed in 1968 with the merger of the Methodist
Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church. Both denominations had
histories, and they were not identical in theology or practice or size, and
both denominations made significant contributions to the defining of The UMC.
2. The sexual revolution was in full swing, and issues of
race were also at the forefront of American culture. Four years after the
formation of The UMC, church delegates sought to define The UMC’s positions on
a number of cultural issues, and topics were discussed and debated at General
Conference. One proposal that was passed stated that “The UMC does not condone
the practice of homosexuality and considers this practice incompatible with
Christian teaching.” Alongside this statement was another one declaring that
homosexual persons “are individuals of sacred worth, created in the image of
God.”
3. The next time General Conference met in 1976, same-sex
marriage was banned. At General Conference in 1984, language was added to the
Book of Discipline that “no self-avowed homosexual” could be ordained. At
General Conference in 1988, language was added that banned United Methodist
clergy from doing same-sex weddings and United Methodist Church from hosting
same-sex weddings. (over two decades no fewer than four statements…)
4. In 2004 the first legal same-sex marriage in the United
States was recorded. Many states began adopting same-sex marriage after 2004,
with 70 percent of the U.S. population living in states with same-sex marriage
by 2014. In 2015 the U.S. Supreme Court struck down state bans on same-sex
marriage, legalizing it in all 50 states.
5. In 2016, after days of heated discussion, the General
Conference requested guidance from the Council of Bishops on all issues in the
Book of Discipline related to sexuality. The Council of Bishops formed the Commission
on the Way Forward, composed of people on opposite sides of the debate as well
as centrist, co-chaired by Bishop Sandra Steiner Ball. After a year and a half
of discussion, the Commission presented their recommendations, including a “One
Church Plan” as well as a “Connectional Conference Plan,” with the Commission
supporting the One Church Plan. The OCP would loosen restrictions and allow
local Boards of Ordained Ministry to use their own discretion in who they
ordain, and allow clergy and churches to make their own decisions regarding
same-sex marriage, without compelling anyone to act contrary to his or her
position. The Connectional Conference Plan would restructure the church
globally into something like co-denominations (my words) that shared general
resources and allowed for cultural and theological differences. The UMC’s
“supreme court” (Judicial Council) asked that a plan be on the table for not
changing positions, and for enforcing disciplines that were already in place.
This became known as the “Traditional Plan.”
6. A special session of General Conference was called in February
2019 in St. Louis to approve a plan. Two-thirds of the U.S. delegates approved
the One Church Plan, but it was rejected largely by delegates from Africa, a
growing contingent. A Traditional Plan was passed with a 53 percent majority,
which puts into place mandatory sentencing of clergy who perform same-sex
weddings, as well as mandatory discipline of bishops who allow self-avowed
homosexuals to follow their call to ministry.
7. So. The Special Conference of 2019 resulted in: no
change of the decades-old policies of The United Methodist Church, and a
tightening of existing disciplinary sentencing.
8. And people looked wearily towards General Conference
2020, where it was anticipated that the One Church Plan or something like it
would be revisited, and where an “amicable separation” might be discussed.
Three side notes:
- The Trust Clause (what: property held by denomination. Safeguard
against pastors or parishioners going against the brand. We are a connectional
church)
- Paragraph 2553, provided (exp 12/23) disaffiliation protocol, with
attention to property, pension liabilities, apportionments, and more.
- You’ll notice that I haven’t mentioned any biblical reasoning. Long story
short, there are devoted and educated believers on “both sides” of the
homosexuality issue, which honestly would best be addressed by another
gathering, be it noted that there are different understandings of exactly how
the bible is to be used and interpreted.
9. So. As I said, people were looking wearily towards
General Conference 2020, where it was anticipated that the One Church Plan or
something like it would be revisited, and where an “amicable separation” might
be discussed, AND THEN A GLOBAL PANDEMIC HAPPENED. GenConf2020 was postponed. Covid.
10. GenConf2020 was postponed. Dates in 2021 were
discussed, but due to a number of factors related to international travel visas
and translation/publication of conference materials, it was announced that
there would not be a global meeting in 2021, and 2022 was unlikely as well.
Which meant that there would be no “official” word on any “church split”
discussions. Some United Methodist pastors were violating the Book of
Discipline’s prohibition on same-sex marriage, some United Methodist bishops
were not enforcing the disciplinary sentencing set at GC19, and a group of
frustrated and dissatisfied UMs chose to renounce their membership with The
UMC, and in the Spring of 2022 announced the formation of an entirely new and
separate Christian denomination called the Global Methodist Church.
Side note: Because of rules,
GenConf2020 was postponed not canceled. This means that the GenConf that meets
in April 2024 in North Carolina IS ACTUALLY the postponed GC20, and therefore
GC24 will likely be postponed until 2026. Maybe.
11. The timing of the launch of the Global Methodist Church
allowed interested laity and clergy and congregations a full year and a half to
discuss and enact the provisions of Para 2553 regarding disaffiliation from The
UMC. People had a full year to prepare their proposals before their Annual
Conferences in 2023.
Some congregations were quick to disaffiliate. Many did the groundwork before
AnnConf23, and this summer we witnessed something of an exodus from The UMC.
12. It has been reported that over 4,200 congregations have
disaffiliated in 2023 (and about 1,800 in 2022) (6K total ish)
WV: 24 EOH: 250 PenDel: 108 Susq:
148
KY: 366 Over 300: KY, IN, TX, NAL,
NC. WPA 298
13. GMC reports somewhere around 3,000 congregations.
UMC in USA approx. 30,000 before GMC.
Note: disaffiliations could unite GMC or other or not.
It appears about half of UMC disaffiliations went GMC
Note: WV and para 2553 – There has always been provision in
the BOD to close a church. No expiration date, no AnnConf vote. Bishop Sandra
Steiner Ball has directed interested churches in that direction. 24 closures
this year. //
Note: not a SPLIT but a SPLINTER
Note: …The mission of The UMC is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.
