Posted on 04/23/2024 1:27:39 PM PDT by Morgana
United Methodist Church bishops are calling for unity as its General Conference kicks off Tuesday after thousands of churches left the mainline Protestant denomination amid efforts to alter its official stance against homosexuality and the ordination of LGBT individuals.
The UMC General Conference is a multiday churchwide legislative gathering in Charlotte, North Carolina, which begins on Tuesday and runs until May 3.
A group of current and former UMC bishops based in Europe released a statement in advance of the gathering, acknowledging the decades-long internal debate over sexual ethics and calling for unity in the denomination. G
"For almost five decades, United Methodists have disagreed over the understanding of human sexuality, which has caused immense pain and hurt to many people," they stated.
"We are committed to the unity of the United Methodist Church, and we are longing for a United Methodist Church that will move towards new forms of being a connectional church, a General Conference focused on global essentials, and an empowerment of regions for contextually relevant forms of living our common mission mandate."
Although over 7,000 congregations have left the UMC in recent years amid its schism on homosexuality, the bishops declared that "the United Methodist Church will remain a faithful witness to the Christian gospel."
"Nevertheless, we are one United Methodist Church, and with all the challenges this entails, we, as your bishops, are committed to be shepherds of the whole flock, and thereby provide leadership toward the goal of understanding, reconciliation and unity in the body of Christ," the bishops continued.
Over the past several years, the UMC has experienced divisive debate over whether to change the wording in its Book of Discipline, which currently prohibits the blessing of same-sex unions and the ordination of people in same-sex romantic relationships.
Although efforts in past General Conferences to change the Book of Discipline have failed, theological progressive leaders within the denomination have often refused to follow or enforce the rules.
In 2019, at a special session of General Conference, delegates voted to add Paragraph 2553 to the Book of Discipline, a temporary measure creating a process for congregations to leave the UMC over the debate.
According to UM News, approximately 7,500 congregations disaffiliated from the UMC via Paragraph 2553 from 2019 to 2023, with the majority of them opting to affiliate with the recently formed Global Methodist Church.
Due to the considerable number of conservatives who have left the UMC over the past couple of years, many believe that the delegates at this year's General Conference will finally change the Book of Discipline.
The UMC Philippines Central Conference's College of Bishops released a statement earlier this month, seemingly refuting claims that the UMC was altering its doctrine and encouraging people to "seek unity by remaining faithful to Jesus Christ through the United Methodist Church."
The Philippines bishops denounced theologically conservative entities like the Wesleyan Covenant Association and the Global Methodist Church, alleging that these entities were engaged in a "disinformation campaign" that falsely claimed "the UMC is changing its doctrines and beliefs about Christ and the Scriptures."
"As we approach a historic General Conference, we join our whole church in prayer and hope that the values of unity, equity, and respect for our missional contexts will be lifted and affirmed as expressions of our love for one another," they continued.
"We pray that as we face seemingly insurmountable challenges as a Church we will remain as a covenant community committed to honor, respect, and love one another despite our differences."
Although the Philippines Central Conference denied claims the UMC will change its doctrine, others within the UMC have said that changing the language in the Book of Discipline to be more LGBT-inclusive is a top priority.
A proposal to amend the Book of Discipline to remove all language pertaining to homosexuality has been introduced by the Rev. Brian Erickson, senior pastor of Trinity United Methodist Church in Homewood, Alabama, and Rev. H.N. Gibson, associate pastor of East Lake United Methodist Church in Birmingham.
Delegates from Alabama, a state where more than half of UMC churches have disaffiliated in recent years, told AL.com that one of their three main goals is to remove "harmful language regarding homosexuality."
However, Lisa Keys-Mathews, a lay leader and reserve General Conference delegate, told the newspaper that there are still enough theological conservatives left in the UMC to resist progressive proposals.
"There are loud voices on both ends," Keys-Mathews said. "There are people intent on causing chaos at General Conference. That disturbs me. That saddens me."
Also present at the conference will be an unofficial caucus of LGBT-identified clergy, who will advocate for changes in the denomination’s stance on homosexuality.
If you’re gonna have a schism, this is a good one to have it over..................
It’s why we disaffiliated over a year ago.
Playing God never ends well when you promote evil.
Everyone has the choice. A) Kingdom of God or B) Kingdom of Satan
In addition, I could not worship there due to the promotion of this agenda to children. Milestones are heavy on the neck.
I actually believe that, against all odds, the progressives will fail yet again, which will lead to a meltdown of epic proportions.
My old church did as well.
I pray you’re right.
“How many here think this won’t end well?”
End well for whom?
God is still in control and is predicted to win.
Satan is not close to winning; makes me sick to think how many humans Satan has, and is, harming.
I suppose it will end “well” for those who love deviant sex more than they love Jesus.
I wonder if this is a record for pabulum puked in one sentence.
“...a United Methodist Church that will move towards new forms of being a connectional church, a General Conference focused on global essentials, and an empowerment of regions for contextually relevant forms of living our common mission mandate.” Shameful gobbledegook from a so-called Christian movement.
Schisms are not necessarily bad.
And homosexuality was not the only issue. Theology of Liberation and some other Leftist doctrine infected the UMC at high mission levels just as it did the Roman Catholic Church.
At the Jesuit University of Central America in San Salvador, El Salvador, Monsignor Fredy Delgado said that during the FMLN guerrilla war era, fully radicalized Jesuit priests stayed in a dorm known as UCA One. Liberal priests stayed in a dormitory know as UCA Two. And traditional priests who were foremost concerned with all that Jesus business had to live off campus miles away in Santa Tecla. There was an unofficial but DeFacto schism between the People’s Church (Iglesia Popular) and the Church that followed Christ.
What is “harmful language regarding homosexuality?”
That it’s wrong and is a sin? That it is butt screwing?
What, exactly?
“a connectional church, a General Conference focused on global essentials, and an empowerment of regions for contextually relevant forms of living our common mission mandate.”
“I wonder if this is a record for pabulum puked in one sentence.”
It has to be in the running for a trophy for ultra-leftist, feel good, meaningless, gobbledegook.
Some sizable portion of General Cnference delagtes are/will be pushing for a vote to adopt “regionalism” to avoid a wholesale entire denomniation vote on LGBT related issues and avid further official schism breakoff congregations. Under the regionalism framwork the regions (across the globe) may take different positions on “LGBT” issues. I think for many Africans (in Africa) in the UMC, regionalism (setting their own policies) is the only way to keep most African UMCcongreations in the UMC and not joing the new gloabl traditionalist Methodist denomination.
From my perspective I feel the American mostly Liberal UMC cnngreations are hoping that keeping the African region in the organizational UMC camp will (1) benefit the UMC financially and (2) give the western “Liberals” in the UMC time to “convert” more Afrian congrgations to their point of few.
If I were a fly on the wall at the UMC Generel Conference I’d tell the Africans not to fall for it.
Why is there such desire, among Methodists and others, to prove that they are liberal on all this LGBT business?
And are they contradicting their own theology on marriage, sexuality, by infusing homosexuality into their denominations?
Leviticus 20:13
If a man also lie with mankind, as he lieth with a woman, both of them have committed an abomination: they shall surely be put to death; their blood shall be upon them.
Romans 1:22-28
22 Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools,
23 And changed the glory of the uncorruptible God into an image made like to corruptible man, and to birds, and fourfooted beasts, and creeping things.
24 Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves:
25 Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshipped and served the creature more than the Creator, who is blessed for ever. Amen.
26 For this cause God gave them up unto vile affections: for even their women did change the natural use into that which is against nature:
27 And likewise also the men, leaving the natural use of the woman, burned in their lust one toward another; men with men working that which is unseemly, and receiving in themselves that recompence of their error which was meet.
28 And even as they did not like to retain God in their knowledge, God gave them over to a reprobate mind, to do those things which are not convenient;
The United Methodist Church is rapidly becoming the Untied Methodist Church.
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