Free Republic

Here is the description of the book: Many people of faith have identified the election of Donald Trump as a confessional crisis--a moment that calls into question the deepest meaning of our religious claims and values. This book gathers reflections by a range of scholars and activists from numerous religious and denominational perspectives to address that crisis. Among the themes treated are disability issues, the LGBT community, gender and race, immigration, the environment, peace, and poverty.

Strong for a Moment Like This - The Daily Devotions of Hillary Rodham Clinton is a book in a Cokesbury Catalog. Cokesbury provides resources for the United Methodist Church.Here are some excerpts from the book description:Strong for a Moment Like This gives readers an inside, personal look at the faith of one of our nation’s most lauded leaders.Rev. Dr. Bill Shillady—a pastoral friend of Clinton’s—and a small team of other pastors provided the Democratic nominee with spiritual support to stay strong through arguably one of the more contentious elections in American history.As Secretary Clinton said in The New York Times...

The first openly lesbian bishop in the United Methodist Church can stay on the job for now, but she is subject to a disciplinary review that could lead to her removal, the top church court ruled Friday. Bishop Karen Oliveto's civil marriage to another woman violates church law that bars clergy who are "self-avowed practicing homosexuals," the Judicial Council said. However, a decision over whether she can remain in the position must come from a separate disciplinary process, the court ruled.

A new student group at Southern Methodist University in Texas launched a fundraiser recently for the abortion group Planned Parenthood. Dallas News reports the student abortion advocacy group began as a response to the university pro-life club and its annual cemetery of the innocents display. Student Claire Krizman, who began the fundraiser for the abortion group, said she has been disturbed by the pro-life display on campus for the past three years. “There was no education component to it,” Krizman told the news outlet. “There wasn’t a ‘Here are your options’ or ‘This is why it’s wrong’ based on their...

It’s interesting to see groups that describe themselves as “pro-choice” attack organizations that offer pregnant women choices that don’t involve abortion. Planned Parenthood and NARAL, two of the largest abortion advocacy groups in the United States, have a history of fighting pro-life pregnancy centers that offer women and their babies life-affirming choices and support. But the latest group to launch a similar attack is a west coast United Methodist group. The Western Methodist Justice Movement recently urged its members to “put CPCs [Crisis Pregnancy Centers] on the defense” by supporting a California law that forces pregnancy centers to promote abortion,...

The mother of an 11-year-old boy found naked pictures of his pastor on his mobile phone. The Florida woman recognized the man in the indecent photos and typed his phone number into Facebook. It led her to Harbor United Methodist Church pastor Tyler Sinkus Smither. The 30-year-old youth pastor from Wilmington, North Carolina was arrested and is charged with two counts of indecent liberties with a child. An affidavit, written by a New Hanover County Sheriff’s Detective Christina Starman, says that Smither first contacted the boy using a chat website, Omegle.

The websites of New York anti-Islam crusader Pamela Geller and radio conspiracist Alex Jones are claiming an obscure United Methodist congregation in Waco, Texas is part of a plan to Islamicize Methodist churches.According to PamelaGeller.com: On-the-ground sources in west Texas confirm that the United Methodist Church (UMC) is potentially engaged in a massive operation designed to reprogram churches as virtual mosques in preparation for a deluge of Muslim refugees. The article quotes at length an anonymous reported church member who, “fearing for his safety,” told PamelaGeller.com that Bosqueville United Methodist Church (UMC) in Waco might offer “Catholic-style ‘sanctuary’ protections for...

After I read the story entitled, “Methodist Churches Converting To ‘Virtual Mosques’ For Muslim Migrants,” I spent much of the day in mild shock. I couldn’t believe what was going on inside of a Christian denomination whose founding was so deeply influenced by the great man John Wesley. I had to know what Methodists thought of this. Surely they didn’t go along with it. At least not all of them or even a majority of them. My assumption, and hope, was that it was a very small minority of Methodists who thought that having worship of Allah in their building...

Sadly, the United Methodist Church is one of a handful of Protestant denominations with clergy who strongly support abortion. LifeNews.com has frequently profiled UMC pastors and church leaders who advance abortion and the denomination has often pushed abortion as a member of the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice. Now, a pro-life writer has posted a collection of quotes from Methodist pastors pushing abortion. Here are a few selections form that list: Pro-abortion Methodist pastor John M. Swomley: It is not enough to say that abortion is not violent. Abortion is a positive decision and not a lesser evil. …[Abortion] is...

No one else can be with you the way that I AM. Know that as I AM perpetually with you as the flowing down of a waterfall , Truly even this presence is your shield and guard. So there is no need to fear for I have already overcome this world for you and Zion is now your home and place of eternal reside. So "See" yourself here for it is your eternal truths you walk in not what is seen with your eyes but "what you know in your heart and soul to Be true". Now find Peace in...

At about 5 a.m. each day — and maybe a little later on weekends — an email from the Rev. Bill Shillady arrives in Hillary Clinton’s inbox. […] It’s no secret that Clinton is a lifelong Methodist. But Shillady feels that many people don’t really know how much her faith “is a daily thing.” He says this is because Clinton’s faith is of a personal variety, one she’s not very comfortable with broadcasting. …

Where exactly do you fall on the political spectrum Secretary Clinton? Stalwart Progressive, as you told us last July? “I take a backseat to no one when you look at my record in standing up and fighting for progressive values.” A Centrist like your dear husband, as you told us last month: “You know, I get accused of being kind of moderate and center. I plead guilty.” Butt really, what difference, at this point, does it make? Especially since your opponent is a xenophobic, Islamophobic sexist pig.  *cough* *cough*I mean, Hillary could be a Marxist and apparently many former Republicans...

It’s weird to think about, but a lot of the things we take for granted are almost shockingly recent inventions. The can opener didn’t exist until 1870—nearly a full century after canned food was first produced (people ate so much canned food that year, you guys). Doors have been around forever, but doorknobs weren’t invented until 1878 (and people were finally able to leave their houses). And grape juice?

Many Judeo-Christian leaders speak out against abortion, but the few who advocate for abortion often are the ones who get the most media attention. On Monday in Kentucky, pro-abortion clergy held a rally at the State Capitol to advocate for abortion and other issues, the State-Journal reports. The event was called the Higher Ground Moral Day of Action, and it was held in conjunction with other rallies nation-wide. Led by clergy, the event highlighted the upcoming election and called on candidates and elected officials to uphold “the most sacred moral principles of our faith and constitutional values.” These included “the...

My children die from a lack of knowledge from rejecting My Spirit for as My word speaks truth the denial of it grieves me and My Messenger of Truth their comforter. So do not despise the gift of prophecy or any other gift for they all come down from the Father of lights and these are all found in My Spirit of Truth and to deny Him is to deny Me as well for I and The Father are one . . . 1 Thessalonians 5:20-21 20 Do not scorn or reject gifts of prophecy or prophecies [spoken revelations-words of...

“Pray for Orlando" we read on Facebook and Twitter. Prayer is vitally important, but is there more we can do? As United Methodist Christians, we mourn with the victims and families of those wounded and killed in the shootings on June 12, 2016 in Orlando, Florida. We may even pray and wonder if anything could have been done to avert this heinous act. But should we do more? Is there anything that can be done to keep something similar from happening in the future? While we may not agree on a solution, many of us agree there is a problem....

n 2016, the frontline of the war against the legitimacy of the Jewish state isn’t Gaza or Israel’s northern border — or even the Golan Heights. It is the global Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions (BDS) movement, which seeks to terminate the Jewish state by delegitimizing it in the world community. This ugly campaign plays out on our nation’s college campuses, including most recently at the University of California-Irvine, where campus police had to intervene to save (mostly) Jewish women from “activists” protesting a film about Israeli soldiers. BDS-ers, crafting their efforts as “pro-peace,” have had considerable success with mainline Protestant...

“In contrast to the United Methodist Church, RCRC dismisses the value of unborn human life” -UM Action Director John Lomperis Portland, OR—United Methodists have voted to require church boards and agencies to withdraw immediately from an organization that advocates for abortion on demand. Delegates from across the 12.1 million-member denomination adopted a proposal concluding affiliation with the Religious Coalition for Reproductive Choice (RCRC) on a vote of 425 to 268 (61 percent to 39 percent) during their quadrennial General Conference meeting in Portland, Oregon. Two United Methodist agencies, the General Board on Church and Society (GBCS) and United Methodist Women...

The United Methodist Church is considering splitting over the full acceptance of gay members, according to reports by top clergy and advocacy groups. Church officials say the president of the Council of Bishops will address the rumor Tuesday in Portland, Ore., where the denomination is holding a major convention. The rumors about the United States’ third-largest faith group began spreading on social media Monday night, when some prominent pastors reportedly told crowds in Portland that a plan is in the works. Details about what the plan entails and who was on board with it were unconfirmed. United Methodist Church spokeswoman...

By Heather Hahn May 9, 2016 | PORTLAND, Ore. (UMNS) On the eve of the 2016 General Conference, more than 100 United Methodist clergy and clergy candidates have come out as LGBTQ religious leaders. “We are here because God has called us to serve in this denomination, and our souls are fed by the theology in which we’ve been raised,” the 111 United Methodists write in what they call “A Love Letter to Our Church.” The signers come from across the United States, and one signer is from the Philippines. They identify themselves as “Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Trans, Queer/Questioning, and Intersex” in...