Posted on 03/10/2014 12:24:11 PM PDT by C19fan
Last October Dr. Thomas Ogletree (above), a clergyman in the United Methodist Church (UMC), performed the wedding ceremony for his gay son. UMC pastors are not supposed to marry gay couples, family members or otherwise. They’re instead supposed to believe what their Book of Discipline (which is to the UMC what, say, the Tax Code Book is to the IRS) tells them to believe, which is that “homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching.”
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So guess what happened this morning instead of the trial of Thomas Ogletree? The UMC bishop overseeing the trial dropped all charges against the pastor. And he didn’t just drop them, either. He turned them into a huge brass bell he used to ring what will likely be remembered as the death knell of the anti-gay policy of the largest mainline Christian denomination in the world.
(Excerpt) Read more at patheos.com ...
The SBC churches have their own problems, like marketing for $$$.
I’ve seen UMC in various intensities. The good ones are serious about salvation, almost like an Arminian flavor of Baptist. The bad ones are about mushy self esteem. (I saw one that put on a musical about Daniel with a girl as the title character. Hello, there is a reason it’s not Danielle.)
Pull out the bible and review it. Find out what the inspired word of God actually is. You might be surprised if you read the US Constitution at the same time. Homosexcuality is not a guaranteed right.
More like keeping out the supplanters.
During the end days it has been prophesized that things like this will occur. Consider the immense damage to peoples faith these “ministers” are doing. I hope and pray to never steer people away from God like those men.
I would guess “no”. Bishops would be reluctant to kick one out for taking a controversial stand. The church could simply go after any pastor who performed one.
This is all tied to whether the state says you must perform them.
And the vacuous “sinner’s prayer”.
I'm glad to be corrected. I thought I had heard a lot of negative things about them the past 10 years (basically the points you refuted: pro sodomite marriage; not strong in taking a pro-life stance; generally preaching a 'social good works program' rather than preaching the Gospel; etc) - but I'm glad to hear that I was wrong.
One standout from the Mainline implosion is the United Methodist Church. It has lost over 3 million U.S. members since the 1960s, more than any other U.S. church. But, almost uniquely among U.S. denominations, its membership is international, and it now has more than 4.4 million members overseas, mostly in Africa. The church’s global membership just surpassed 12 million for the first time in its history. Just released data shows the U.S. church lost more than 300,000 members just across four recent years, while the African churches gained almost 1 million. The denomination’s most liberal U.S. regions, on the West Coast and in the Northeast, were the fastest declining, while the relatively more moderate Southeast remained almost steady.
http://spectator.org/articles/38044/thriving-christianity
There would seem to be a point where controversy ends and abomination begins, though.
To date, none of the “gay marriage” states have said that religious ministers “must” perform them. Attempting to do that would really make the merde s’impact le propeller.
The Methodist church has been circling the drain theologically for a while.
My wife was a choir director at a large UMC in Northern California. She quit after the head pastor told her he was an agnostic.
There is much internal criticism about this.
It boils down to whether the prayer is sincere. If it’s not sincere, don’t pray it.
I’ve heard of atheist priests and rabbis. Seems some seminaries don’t ask the obvious — do you believe?
The UMC is considered “family friendly”. That goes from infants to octogenarians.
My daughter is a member of a Methodist “faith community” where she goes to college. She is spending Spring Break on a mission trip in Central America. We have started a “faith community” as well. It’s part of the new “Let’s open up the model” push by the church. To put it succinctly, it’s a marriage of Sunday School, small group and worship.
The nonagenarians are outta luck?
(Duck’n & runn’n!)
When certain Episcopalian sects started rainbow weddings for homosexuals, many if not most of their members showed up at Catholic and Orthodox churches as new members.
It is vacuous. It completely skirts the issue of whether the “repeater” really thinks they need a Savior. If you don’t think you need a Savior, what’s the point?
But of course, I am colored by my Methodism where you can always Fall from Grace so the prayer doesn’t ensure anything.
Also every Baptist I have met recently come across as Reformed. They define “Once Saved Always Saved” as classical “Perseverance of the Saints”. Strange.
The west coast UMC is already joined to the enemy. I left years ago after the minister preached that there was no hell, no devil and no demons. John Lennon would have been proud.
Not so fast: http://praisephilly.com/80061/woman-sues-church-over-gay-marriage/
Sure. People in different areas have different focus by their communities. Probably typical of a general comparison of other denominations comparing their Texas and California groups, or New England compared to Mississippi.
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