United Methodist Church formally declares political mission, rejects salvation mission

United Methodist Church General Conference in Fort Worth ^ | 29 April 2008 | United Methodist Church, General Confer

[mbarker12474]

Yesterday, 29 April 2008, at 3:32 PM, the United Methodist Church formally and explicitely rejected it's long held and Biblically-based mission to make disciples of Christ by saving souls, and declared officially that its mission is to transform the world. This codifies in the Book of Discipline of the UMC, its book of law, what was already the de facto case in practice.

Here's the new text:

The mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

Here's the previous text:

The mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ.

Here's a rejected amendment:

The mission of the Church is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the salvation of souls and the transformation of the world.

http://calms.umc.org/2008/Menu.aspx?type=Petition&mode=Single&number=271

Legislation Tracking Petition Search Calendar Search Plenary Action Petition 80271 << Back Mission of the UMC (80271-FO-¶120) Petition Status: Calendar Item Petition Text: Submitted Text ADCA p. 917 References: Book of Discipline: ¶120 Committee: Faith and Order Financial Implications: No Submitted by: Council of Bishops (General Agency) Ernest S. Lyght Washington, DC, USA Task Force to Study the Episcopacy Carolyn Briscoe Washington, DC, USA

Calendar Item Status << Back Mission of the UMC (FO1-¶120-A) Calendar Item Status: Committee Voted (Printed in DCA p. 2049) Calendar Item No: 171 Petitions on Calendar: 80271 Consent Calendar: Not assigned to a Consent Calendar. Committee Motion: Recommendation to Adopt Committee Vote: For: 48 Against: 22 Not Voting: 0

Vote Date and Time: 4/25/2008 8:16 PM Legislative Committee Report: The Petition is Adopted As Submitted. Click here to view full text

Plenary Action Status << Back Last Vote Action: Vote on Main Motion This motion was Adopted, with 776 votes for and 102 votes against. Plenary Motions: 4/29/2008 3:23 PM Amend the Main Motion REJECTED 295-548 Amend discipline ¶120

At the end of the first paragraph bolded statement "for the transformation of the world..."

Add "through sharing and living out the Gospel".

4/29/2008 3:31 PM Amend the Main Motion REJECTED 193-690 Add bolded text -

for the salvation of souls and the transformation of the world....

4/29/2008 3:32 PM Vote on Main Motion ADOPTED 776-102

[stevio]

Good for your MIL. God bless her for eternity.

[Coldwater Creek]

Liberation theology, purpose driven theology = sending unchurch folks to Hell!

[Coldwater Creek]

You couldn't hear the congregational singing for all of the loud music and flashing lights!

[EdReform]

They’ve actually got the worst of both worlds. It’s a Political Cult: a social agenda without hope and spirituality, a baseless and forlorn ethic.

Yes, indeed. They are moving toward liberal secular humanism.

[AppyPappy]

Funny. We send people to far lands to do mission work and we won’t even send people to a church in our own hometown to do mission work.

If you think the UMC is “lost”, it would make sense that a committed Christian would RUN to go to a UMC church to preach the Gospel.

[Corin Stormhands]

I understand your position. I was asking xzins as he is a UMC pastor and has fought the good fight against the liberal takeover of the denomination.

My heritage is strongly Wesleyan/Methodist. But I have not attended a UMC since college

[Joya]

United Methodists choose Globalism over Gospel of Jesus.

[NonValueAdded]

Excellent point ... why not work to reclaim the church from those who have steered it wrong?

[Joya]

Wow. I admire your mother-in-law’s courage. But what a loss after 80 years of investing herself in the Methodist Church. Thanks for telling of this.

[AppyPappy]

Because that is HARD and you might be criticized for it. I know too many ex-Methodists who now attend Barcolounger Baptist Church. I don’t think they left over theology.

Or they find a church where everyone thinks alike and dissension is not allowed.

[mbarker12474]

> If you think the UMC is “lost”, it would make sense that a committed Christian would RUN to go to a UMC church to preach the Gospel.

True. Though not to join and contribute to apportionments, but to preach the gospel.

There is much to be done within. Some folks are trying really hard.

[DieHard the Hunter]

> Yes, indeed. They are moving toward liberal secular humanism.

I read that, and had a vision flash before my eyes as to what attending that "church" would be like:

It would be like the Barneyfication of Christianity.

You would be sitting there, listening to somebody with no claim to Moral Authority preach at you, while being unable to offer you any Spirituality. Rather like watching endless episodes of Barney the Purple Dinosaur, but for adults.

[Fiji Hill]

Methodists who want to stay in and fight should check out the Institute on Religion and Democracy, which is leading the fight to get the church back into the business of saving souls.

[DieHard the Hunter]

> Funny. We send people to far lands to do mission work and we won’t even send people to a church in our own hometown to do mission work.
>
> If you think the UMC is “lost”, it would make sense that a committed Christian would RUN to go to a UMC church to preach the Gospel.

“A prophet is not without honor, save in his own country, and among his own kin, and in his own house.”

[MichiganCheese]

Me and my family left years ago and haven’t looked back at their social indoctrination which included accepting and celebrating(promoting?) homosexuality, environmentalism and earth worship.

[Fiji Hill]

You couldn't hear the congregational singing for all of the loud music and flashing lights!

Sadly, the Methodist Church seems to be turning its back on much of its rich musical tradition. Some of America's greatest hymn writers, including James M. Black (When the Roll is Called Up Yonder), Leila Morris (Sweet Will of God, The Fight is On, Oh Christian Soldier), Charles H Gabriel (He is So Precious to Me), Phillip Bliss (Let the Lower Lights Be Burning, It Is Well With My Soul), and William Kirkpatrick (Jesus Saves) were Methodists.

Few of their works can be found in the current United Methodist hymnal. However, the book does include the civil rights anthem We Shall Overcome and the pacifistic Oh, Young and Fearless Prophet ("forbid false love of country..."). Some old favorites have also been altered to conform to standards of political correctness. God of Our Fathers is now God of the Ages, and Good Christian Men Rejoice is now Good Christian Friends Rejoice. And in This Is My Father's World, the phrase "the battle's not yet done" must have seemed too militaristic, so it has been replaced with "why should my heart be sad."

[Boagenes]

I have to get past the Mary thing, first.

[MEGoody]

:::sigh::: It appears the “Confessing Movement” within the UM church hasn’t had much impact. Time for the confessors to either rise up and do something signficant or leave the UM church.

[MEGoody]

:::sigh::: It appears the “Confessing Movement” within the UM church hasn’t had much impact. Time for the confessors to either rise up and do something signficant or leave the UM church.

[xzins]

The following was a pre-conference write-up by Dr Riley Case of the Confessing Movement, a solid, biblical group working for historic Christianity in the UMC. They did not like the idea of "transformation of the world" without something highlighting "for the salvation of souls."

It matters that Wesley (and many Methodists still) was post-millennial. He really did see a "transformation of the world" until it is the kingdom of God on earth.

Unfortunately, I'm not sure that post-millennialism works well with post-Christian Arminianism's ignoring of the depravity of man in favor of an overly fawning God. It will always become a political kingdom that gets built.

Conversion and The Mission of the Church

A General Conference petition to expand the mission of the church would add the words “for the transformation of the world…” so that the mission statement would read: The purpose of the annual conference is to make disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.

The petition comes from the Council of Bishops with the rationale that it reflects more adequately our understanding of the mission of the church. The bishops also link this expanded definition with mission initiatives adopted by the Connectional Table. The initiatives are leadership development, congregational development, ministry with the poor, and global health.

One certainly cannot speak against the idea of transforming the world but one might raise the question as to how the world is to be transformed. One hundred years ago the church spoke about the “conversion” of the world and “the salvation of the human race.” A few years later the language shifted so that instead of seeking the conversion of the world we were working for the bringing of God’s kingdom on the earth. This reflected a theological shift away from evangelism toward social justice.

Either way our sights were high. A couple of world wars and the rise (and fall) of communism tempered our vision. Never mind. We’re back again with a big vision, a vision of transformation. But the question still remains: Are we about social betterment or conversion?

The Africans might come to our rescue. There is evidently a petition coming from one of the African conferences (this material is not in the Advanced Christian Advocate) to insert a phrase something like “for the conversion of eternal souls” to the transformation phrase. The Africans have the most to gain by an emphasis on leadership development, work with the poor, and dealing with global health. But they are also very much aware that these emphases must not be considered separately from the salvation of souls.

It will be interesting to see how General Conference deals with these proposals.