By the Numbers
Resource UMC
A United Methodist Special
With the opening of the United Methodist Church's first comprehensive General Conference in eight years coming April 23 in Charlotte, N.C., church bureaucrats and special interest groups are making a final push for their respective legislative campaigns via press releases, op-eds, email, social media, videos and online events.
Here are highlights from preparations.
United Methodist Creation Justice Movement was scheduled to focus its April Movement Café on its plans for General Conference. The online discussion was set for 1 p.m. EDT April 17 to feature details on a planned Earth Day Vigil April 22, the day before General Conference convenes, along with how to join the vigil remotely and/or host Earth Day events in local churches. Also on the webinar agenda: how to encourage regional delegates to General Conference to back UM Creation Justice's resolutions along with events planned for Charlotte: a creation justice-themed walking devotional, Global Ministries Solar Trailer, Greenfaith Action in support of fossil-fuel divestment and more.
United Women of Faith (formerly known as United Methodist Women) has announced its support for several petitions related to the health and welfare of women, girls and youth, its missional focus. These include:
Wespath Benefits and Investments, the UMC's pension agency, was profiled April 12 by UM News assistant news editor Heather Hahn for its support for one of the major General Conference issues, regionalization. In an article "Why Wespath Supports Regionalization," Hahn reports that "agency staff see the legislation, aimed at putting the U.S. and central conferences on equal footing, as crucial to their work of supporting clergy and other church workers in retirement."
Wespath's top executive, Andrew Hernden, also published an op-ed in which he described the agency's reluctance to divest fully from its holdings in fossil-fuel companies as part of a "change-from-within" strategy. Fossil-fuel divestment is likely to be a major issue coming before General Conference.
Wespath also is proposed a major revision of the clergy retirement program, which Hahn described in an April 17 article, "Big Changes Proposed for Clergy Retirement." She writes that agency staff "are quick to point out that clergy who have already retired or are about to retire in the next two years will see no changes in their benefits. Current clergy members also will keep whatever retirement benefits they already have accrued."
Going forward, however, Wespath proposes to do away with the lifetime retirement benefit, replacing it with a system like most 401K retirement plans offered to secular employees.
General Commission on Status and Role of Women has submitted 10 petitions seeking to shore up the UMC's response to sexual misconduct in the church, emphasizing rapid response and protections for victims as part of its sexual ethics. A frequent target of conservative/traditionalist forces that want to do away with the agency, the commission says its priorities for the next four-year period of church programming are:
- Educating leaders about healthy boundaries and integrity in ministry
- Championing women in leadership
- Reflecting on the UMC's communal health through monitoring gatherings
- Striving towards the eradication of sexual misconduct
In addition, the commission is coordinating with other church agencies on several events that will celebrate, recognize and inform GC delegates and observers about issues impacting women within The United Methodist Church. The events will be listed in the calendar published in The Daily Christian Advocate.
Reconciling Ministries Network, an unofficial organization supporting full LGBTQ inclusion in the UMC, invited United Methodists to imagine a new denomination emerging from the 2024 session (technically considered the 2020 General Conference thrice postponed by the coronavirus pandemic). RMN executive director Jan Lawrence said in a newsletter that her organization supports regionalization, the Revised Social Principles, and removal of the "harmful language" of the UMC's prohibition holding "the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching."
"But 2024 is not just about General Conference," Lawrence wrote. "It’s an opportunity to go ahead and live into the Church reimagined. The role of the Reconciling movement in that reimagined denomination is to ensure that United Methodist churches are safe, brave spaces for LGBTQ+ people and their allies."
Mainstream UMC, a centrist caucus devoted to United Methodist unity, listed its priorities as the "three R's" seen as the General Conference's main issues: regionalization, Revised Social Principles and removal of the "harmful language." In addition, Mainstream UMC is one of the most politically active caucuses opposing the influence of traditionalist forces from Good News (officially known as The Forum for Scriptural Christianity Inc.) and the Wesleyan Covenant Association. Mainstream UMC's executive director Mark R. Holland cited the two group's General Conference strategies in a recent blog post:
- GMC affiliate, Good News, has now issued threats to delegates.
- GMC affiliate, Wesleyan Covenant Association (WCA), has called delegates who disagree with top-down disaffiliations white supremacists.
Mainstream UMC also announced videos supporting regionalization in an April 17 newsletter along with links to General Conference resources. The videos, in English with subtitles in multiple languages, are "short commercials intended to be shared with your United Methodist contacts," said the newsletter. They're available on the Mainstream UMC website and on its Facebook page.
The caucus also offers 13 different 90-minute programs featuring different leaders from around the United States discussing UMC issues. They're intended to provide perspectives on the coming General Conference.
General Council on Finance and Administration has created a series of brief videos hoping to educate delegates, observers and rank-and-file United Methodists as to the denomination's budget process via "Data-Driven Discernment: Charting Hope at General Conference." GCFA's announcement of the resource said: "Our 'Data-Driven Discernment' campaign is dedicated to providing ... essential resources on critical financial and legal matters impacting The United Methodist Church." The resource includes "comprehensive videos, reports, legislation updates, and more to guide informed decision-making and chart the course for our collective future."
United Methodist Africa Forum issued a letter in four languages – English, Portuguese, French and Swahili – outlining its legislative priorities for General Conference to African bishops (although bishops have no voice or vote at the legislative assembly). Like some other international delegates, the caucus urges African delegates to oppose any legislation to extend the disaffiliation process that expired Dec. 31, 2023.
The forum advocates for African delegates to support:
- Regionalization;
- The Revised Social Principles with an amendment to define marriage as a holy covenant between a man and a woman;
- Continued churchwide financial support of UMC-founded Africa University in Mutare, Zimbabwe, and for secular and theological educational development in Africa including the establishment of a $5 million fund spread over four years for such development.
- Maintaining ordination standards as outlined in African versions of the Book of Discipline's requirements.
Those not attending General Conference in person can find multiple ways of following the proceedings via the assembly's website. Plenary sessions will be livestreamed. The Daily Christian Advocate, the official journal of General Conference, has set up a legislation tracker.
United Methodist Insight Editor Cynthia B. Astle has reported on The United Methodist Church at all levels since 1988. The coming session will be the 10th General Conference from which she has reported.