Posted on 07/22/2022 6:12:44 PM PDT by Jan_Sobieski
More than 100 churches have gone to court, suing the Florida Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) because they want to leave the denomination immediately.
The main reason involves disagreements over United Methodist clergy performing marriages for LGBTQ couples and ordaining LGBTQ people as clergy in the church.
One hundred and six Florida churches want to leave the denomination, and take their property with them.
The lawsuit says the church leadership is not abiding by the church's Book of Discipline, which deals with Christian doctrine, the denomination's beliefs, and the ownership of church buildings and properties.
The Tallahassee Democrat reports the lead plaintiff, Grace United Methodist Church in Lawtey, sued the conference contending that church leadership imposed a hefty exit payment as a condition of leaving the UMC.
The lawsuit alleges that the "{Florida} Annual Conference has taken the position that it is entitled to keep {Grace United Methodist Church's} Property—which was owned and paid for . . . long before The UMC and the Annual Conference ever existed—unless Grace . . . pays a substantial payment of money as unilaterally determined by the Annual Conference Defendants."
According to The National Center for Life and Liberty, Grace United Methodist was founded in 1888 as a Methodist Episcopal church…
(Excerpt) Read more at 1.cbn.com ...
When I was a kid, I was a bit dyslexic. I would often read “United” as “Untied”. The United States is becoming the Untied States and the United Methodist Church is now the Untied Methodist Church.
I work with a Christian youth organization. We hold to the biblical belief that marriage is one man and one woman.
We may have to ditch a few leftist churches from membership.
Why do they have to file a lawsuit? Just leave.
“I would often read ‘United’ as ‘Untied’.”
Bumper sticker: “BAD SPELLERS OF THE WORLD — UNTIE!”
And that's the tough part...
I have had it will all churches. I’m better off on my own
I think the issue is what entity, or which denomination , owns the church properties. That’s why these churches cannot simply leave.
Why do they have to file a lawsuit? Just leave.
= = =
There is the issue of “Church Property”.
If they walk out, they leave all that property to the LGBTFAGS.
Hard to take, and where will they go to meet and socialize? Maybe they had a school (I’m just speculating).
Especially since their offerings over the years paid for all of that.
Just leaving sounds kind of like N.T. Church. I think we will be forced into that direction. It might feel bad, but it will really be good.
Love that graphic. Shirley that’s not Leslie Nielsen reading that paper is it?
Our Church in Kentucky has decided to accept the rules that allow gay marriage and ordination. To be seen whether we actually allow it or not.
If they do, I’m out. Would be a very sad day.
“There is the issue of ‘Church Property’. If they walk out, they leave all that property to the LGBTFAGS. Hard to take, and where will they go to meet and socialize?”
I guess Methodists are different — each church must not be independent. For us, it is a matter of having the membership vote to leave the governing organization. Keep the property. Continue to meet and socialize. The church owns the property, not an entity in a hierarchy.
Retain the original bylaws; don’t adopt the new woke bylaws.
My understanding is that the properties are owned by the UMC, not by the local congregation. So if they don’t do something like this, they leave the property behind, which is hard to swallow without a fight. Which I am glad they are putting up, even though I am not a Methodist.
I see. The UMC owns the property, not the membership. I’m not familiar with that concept. I sure do hope they hold fast to their principles, but it sounds like they’re captive in a way.
The only church I need is wherever I am. It’s been said it’s better to go fishing and think of God than it is to go to church and think of fishing. I don’t need a building to communicate with my God.
It has to do with the ownership of church property.
It’s a really screwed up situation, because regardless of the legal forms, the reality is the congregations paid for their properties by and large.
Of course not--no one does. But you do need one to communicate with your fellow believers:
And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.
Hebrews 10:24-25
Property in the UMC is held in trust for the Conference - read, Bishop - by the Board of the local church. The last General Conference created a structure for the division to occur without rancor. The leadership of the US conferences has abrogated that agreement making it impossible for the division to occur without hostility.
The will be whole local conferences leave the UMC. In most cased individual churches are seeking to leave with their facilities in tact. Again, the leadership is bitterly and illegally opposing this forcing the matter into court.
The leadership of the UMC in the US and especially the liberal conferences have long been under the authority of Satan. For many years they have rejected ministries that are Biblically based. This has finally come to a boiling point.
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