I've seen that first-hand with a UMC Methodist church that had IMHO a good pastor. Except that when this kind of issue was brought years ago, instead of siding with the members who wanted the church advocacy to go back to Wesley's holiness teachings, he sided with the loud and proud hedonists in the church who wanted the church advocacy to line up more and more with the Book of Democrats.
I believe the pastor made that choice because an old bitty threatened to create a scandal and mess up the pension he expected to soon start getting. I'm not justifying his choice. But I took it as a life lesson to not let myself be in a similar situation where all my eggs are in one basket that someone of worldly influence can disrupt with their intent to take down good people doing the Lord's work.
“But I took it as a life lesson to not let myself be in a similar situation where all my eggs are in one basket that someone of worldly influence can disrupt with their intent to take down good people doing the Lord’s work.”
Even if you get in that position, sometimes you have to say “to hell with the world” and put your trust in God. Man can wipe our your fortunes, but God may restore them.
Our pastor didn’t even bring it up. It’s a 2 church circuit. One is old and dying but has money and the other is younger and more dynamic but has no money. Luckily, no cemeteries. My guess is that the UMC wished we would leave.