June 4, 2024
By Rev. Dr. Scott Field
If you read the WCA Outlook you are aware that in the past couple of years over 25% of United Methodist congregations in the USA have left the denomination. Many others, however, decided to suspend such a disruptive decision to see if it would be warranted. After all, they were told by their District Superintendents, Bishops, and, in many cases, their pastors, that bad actors were stoking the fires of discontent. United Methodism is a big ten, they were assured. Pay attention to the decisions of the General Conference in Charlotte, they were told, before making any hasty decisions. Predictably, because pastors, District Superintendents, and Bishops are thought to be trustworthy and truthful, most congregations in the USA and whole annual conferences in places like Africa chose to wait and see.
They waited. Now what do they see?
- No more disaffiliations.
In his address at the opening of the General Conference, Bishop Thomas Bickerton, then the President of the UMC Council of Bishops, said (repeatedly) that if conservatives don’t want to be in The NewUMC, they should leave. The General Conference, however, forcefully voted down any proposal that would have extended in exit path for churches in either the USA or elsewhere. As far as the UMC hierarchy is concerned, disaffiliation is over. If you are UMC, you’ve been told to take it or leave it.
- Backdoor options are closed/closing
In a few USA Annual Conferences, Bishops have announced that they will propose an exit path for churches in their area at the upcoming Annual Conference Session. Other bishops, who previously indicated that perhaps paragraph 2549 in The United Methodist Book of Discipline could provide an option for closure and release of local church property are, in some cases, now publicly questioning whether that option is legal. In these situations, whatever option might be made available will not be available for long. In other situations, no exit option is available whatsoever.
- Propaganda has overtaken pastoral care
You are familiar with the saying, “He who fooled me once, shame on him. He who fools me twice, shame on me.” That is, I think, a fair summary of the calls and emails I have received from United Methodists who recently attended one of the Open Forums in some annual conference led by their bishop and delegates to the General Conference. The events were promoted as a way to get information about what was decided at the General Conference and the impact on local church life. All of the callers and emails used the word “propaganda” or one of its synonyms to describe the presentation. Despite the dramatic changes approved by the General Conference, the Bishops and DS’s assured the folks that “nothing would change at the local church level.” All of them know that this assurance is a lie. The shepherds of the flock have become, as one said, guardians of the institution. The sheep are left to fend for themselves.
Sort of, but not quite.
It is true that you may find yourself empty-handed if you look to UMC leaders for help in discerning the path forward. But not to worry.
There is already a network of life-minded and like-hearted United Methodists and former United Methodists for information and networking. God has not left you to “fend for yourself.” Sisters and brothers are nearby.
Lift Up Your Eyes…
The UMC hierarchy might have convinced themselves that disaffiliation is over, but the season of denominational separation continues. Denominational leaders, in many cases, have demonstrated that they are not trustworthy sources of information or assistance to you. But information and assistance is available.
Here are a couple of items likely not reported by your Annual Conference or, if so, reported only after having been “sanitized” to affirm the institution. These play counter to the denominational narrative that all the conflict of disaffiliation ended with the General Conference.
Testimony of an Uninterested Party: The Alabama Supreme Court
Last week the Alabama Supreme Court ruled against a group of 48 United Methodist congregations that had sued the Annual Conference for adding additional burdens to the disaffiliation process. The suit against the annual conference was dismissed on the basis that the Alabama Supreme Court does not have jurisdiction in matters of religious belief and practice.
However, in their opinions, two justices provided “uninterested party testimony” that rings true with many local United Methodists:
Associate Justice Tommy Bryan wrote in his opinion, “By enacting ¶ 2553, the UMC allowed churches the opportunity to leave the UMC and retain their property if they were to leave “for reasons of conscience”; the churches had a certain period to make their decision. Deep into that period, the (Alabama West Florida) Conference adopted a new requirement — one not explicitly contained in the Book of Discipline — making it more burdensome for churches to leave.”
“There is something extremely unsettling about changing the rules during the course of the game. I question whether this process was fair. However, as noted, we simply do not have the jurisdiction to decide this matter,” he added.
Associate Justice Greg Cook wrote, “I write separately to express my sympathy for the predicament faced by the churches in this case. In particular, I am concerned by the churches’ claim that the Conference unfairly engineered the disaffiliation process to prevent their departure from the UMC.”
“Although I sympathize with the fairness concerns raised by the churches, the First Amendment to the United States Constitution (and our existing caselaw) leave this Court with no choice but to deny their request for relief. Instead, the only remedy for the conduct alleged by the churches in this case must come from the members of the Judicial Council, the UMC’s ecclesiastical tribunal (that is, its own judicial system), guided by their faith, consciences, and the principles of Biblical justice,” he added.
(For more on this, click here.)
Of course, like much of the administrative/management/judicial structure of the UMC, the Judicial Council has shown itself often to be less of an honest broker and more of a partisan advocate for the UMC bishops.
Testimony from a Protest of African United Methodists
Just when UMNews Service barely noted the vote of the Ivory Coast (Côte d’Ivoire) Annual Conference to separate from the UMC, additional news comes from elsewhere.
Last week Rwanda, a Provisional Annual Conference under Burundi, voted to leave the United Methodist Church. They decided to leave the UMC following the decision taken recently by the UMC to change the marriage definition & other related issues.
In Zimbabwe last week there was also a protest by UMC laity in Harare, Zimbabwe, at the UMC headquarters. The protest was organized by Voice of Laity and Advocacy, in response to the decisions by the General Conference changing the definition of marriage and approving the wedding of same-sex couples in United Methodist churches. James Kawadza, chair of the group, said at the protest:
“White members of the church were failing to recognize that Africa is no longer a colony…. Regionalization is neo-colonialism.” (To read all of Mr. Kawadza’s statement, click here.)
The General Conference concluded just a month ago with no path for disaffiliation approved, but it is crystal clear the season of denominational separation is gaining fresh momentum. State Supreme Court Justices see the injustice of the UMC, whole annual conferences in Africa are acting to separate themselves from the UMC, and laity in Zimbabwe are protesting publicly, appealing to their bishop for a special annual conference session to discuss and vote upon their relationship to the UMC. And yet, their bishop has no comment.
So, what about you?
Perhaps you “get it”, too. You also feel badgered, manipulated, spoken down to, propagandized…and now, now that you have “waited and seen”, you can smell it a long way away. You are tired of being told what you see is not what you see. You no longer believe that everything “not from headquarters” is disinformation, misinformation, and promoted by nefarious bad actors. You just don’t believe the leaders you used to trust.
Okay. What now?
Here are three suggestions for you:
- Connect with others in a similar situation. You may not know who they are, but you can find some of them by contacting the Wesleyan Covenant Association. Go to info@wesleyancovenant.org to leave a message. Let us know what you’re thinking. We can likely help you get connected.
- Go to our newly developing landing page, Revive! Our consultancy video series is adding new episodes most every week with resources that may fit your situation.
- Now the most challenging suggestion of all: Pray.
Ask the Lord if the stirring you are experiencing is not simply frustration or anger; stop blaming the bishop or District Superintendent. Ask the Lord if this is the stirring of the Holy Spirit for you to take the initiative to contact others, to gather information, to consider whether you and some others are called to start a new congregation altogether. It may sound scary, but many are finding it is the most spiritually-rich, purpose-focused, prayer-fueled thing they have ever done. Maybe it is time to make the move from “church” as something others do and you join in, to “church” as something you initiate under the influence of the Holy Spirit and God brings others to join you.
If you’d like practical information as you consider what that stirring in your soul might mean, check out The River Network International.
The Wesleyan Covenant Association’s mission is to inform, assist, network, and resource those who are discerning their path forward and, where appropriate, to provide counsel and guidance for their departure from the UMC and, also where appropriate, to provide counsel and guidance for their entry into the Global Methodist Church.
Enough waiting to see? Seen enough? Prayerfully step into a new beginning.
“No eye has seen, no ear has heard,
and no mind has imagined
what God has prepared
for those who love him.”
(1 Corinthians 2:9)