UMC Faces Turbulence Over LGBTQ Bans' Removal

by

General Conference 2024

A United Methodist Insight Special

Barely a month after a historic meeting that removed half a century of official discrimination against LGBTQ persons, The United Methodist Church faces new turbulence as homosexuality foes opt out of the worldwide denomination.

General Conference delegates voted in late April and early May to remove the UMC's bans against ordaining LGBTQ persons as clergy, same-sex weddings in United Methodist churches, and United Methodist pastors conducting same-sex weddings. More importantly, delegates adopted revised Social Principles that eliminated the policy on which all the enforceable church bans were built: "the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching."

Rumblings against those General Conference decisions, began in Charlotte, N.C., while delegates were still conducting business. Now members of one of its biggest African regional units has voted to leave the denomination, while another conference ponders its future.

According to UM News' May 28 daily digest, members of the Côte d’Ivoire Conference voted in a special session to leave The United Methodist Church. Côte d’Ivoire came provisionally into the denomination in 2004 and its incorporation was ratified in 2008. At last count, it reported more than 1 million members, making it one of the UMC's largest conferences.

Cote d'Ivoire Bishop Benjamin Boni issued a statement reported by La Croix, an international journal, that “the United Methodist Church now rests on socio-cultural values that have consumed its doctrinal and disciplinary integrity. Legislation does not compel churches."

Zimbabwe unrest

At the same time, United Methodists in Zimbabwe have been demonstrating against homosexuality, which is outlawed in their country. News reports there have speculated that the Zimbabwe East and Zimbabwe West conferences may also vote to leave the denomination.

Two leaders of traditionalist Wesleyan Covenant Association, the Rev. Forbes Matonga of Zimbabwe West and layman Simon Mafunda of Zimbabwe East, have been outspoken against removing the UMC's LGBTQ bans. They also have spoken out against regionalization, which conservatives see as a means to remove LGBTQ bans. Matonga was head of Zimbabwe West's General Conference delegation, and Mafunda is the WCA's Africa coordinator.

Ironically, the Zimbabwe resistance comes after Zimbabwe East delegate Molly Hlekani Mwayera proposed the marriage amendment to the Revised Social Principles that was adopted by General Conference delegates. Currently a member of the country's Supreme Court, Mwayera proposed defining marriage as a union "between a man and a woman of consenting age OR two persons of consenting age." Her amendment incorporated three crucial issues related to marriage:

  • Refuting African and Asian practices of compelling underage girls into marriage with older men;
  • Removing restrictions against same-sex marriage that's legally allowed in the United States and Europe; and
  • Upholding a traditional view of marriage as a sacred covenant between a man and a woman.

Mwayera's alternative made the Revised Social Principles acceptable to most delegates, resulting in the document's adoption by a wide margin.

Exercising 'local option'

While removal of the LGBTQ bans has been widely hailed in the United States, the pastor of at least one large-membership congregation publicly has taken a stand against allowing same-sex weddings in his church.

The Rev. Paul Rasmussen, senior pastor of Highland Park United Methodist Church located adjacent to the central Dallas campus of Southern Methodist University, announced after General Conference that he would exercise an option not to allow same-sex weddings. The option not to hold same-sex weddings stems from a United Methodist policy that gives pastors the authority to decide who can marry in the churches to which they are appointed.

Highland Park is known as one of the "cathedral churches" of United Methodism, both for its ornate architecture and for the prominence of many of its members and attendees including former president George W. Bush and his wife, Laura. United Methodist-related Perkins School of Theology conducted its 2024 graduation ceremony at Highland Park UMC May 11.

In a video on the church website, Rasmussen said that the change adopted by General Conference "is neither an invitation nor a mandate for us to change from the church that we have always been." He added that pastors on Highland Park's staff wouldn't be prevented from officiating at same-sex weddings at venues other than the church.

Rasmussen said that Highland Park upholds the traditional definition of marriage as a union between a man and a woman. He also said that the church would have a say on whether to accept the possible appointment of a same-sex-married pastor.

U.S. United Methodist bishops have issued pastoral letters and videos explaining that the removal of LGBTQ bans doesn't compel churches to hold same-sex weddings or to accept LGBTQ clergy. For example, Bishop David Wilson of the Great Plains Conference posted a video this week reflecting on the changes and outlining protections for traditionalist churches and pastors (see video at top). The UMC's first Native American bishop, Bishop Wilson presided at an early plenary session during the assembly in Charlotte.

Mixed ecumenical reaction

Reactions from the UMC's ecumenical partners have been mixed. A Vatican official told an LGBTQ-friendly publication that the vote "wouldn't affect" ongoing dialogue between the Catholic Church and the UMC. In a different reaction, two legislative committees of the Episcopal Church approved continuing full communion talks with the UMC as a result of the LGBTQ bans' removal.

Turmoil over the LGBTQ bans' removal has bled over into questions about a plan to restructure the denomination known as regionalization. This proposal would give local autonomy to church regions to decide operating rules and mission priorities corresponding to their cultural contexts, including LGBTQ acceptance or rejection.

Regionalization requires adoption of several constitutional amendments and would result in regional conferences set up roughly geographically, including the United States. The initial impetus for regionalization to de-centralize U.S. church issues from global decision-making came from United Methodists outside the United States.

The United Methodist Council of Bishops has pledged to support adoption of the regionalization constitutional amendments. According to a May 7 press release, over the next two years the bishops will

  • "Offer resources and opportunities for conversations about regionalization and its necessary amendments.
  • "Vigorously support the passage of needed amendments through teaching and preaching.
  • "Prohibit the spread of misinformation about regionalization by United Methodists or external church and political entities."

The last item refers to a two-year campaign by traditionalists, especially the Wesleyan Covenant Association and the Good News caucus, to mischaracterize the intent and implementation of worldwide regionalization and the UMC in general. The bishops' press release didn't specify how they intend to enforce prohibitions against misinformation, which has been documented as a key tactic by traditionalists that resulted in the departure of more than 7,500 U.S. churches from United Methodism since 2019.

Not everyone's unhappy

While some parts of the church resisted and denounced General Conference actions, others praised and celebrated delegates' decisions while acknowledging that the UMC has far to go to achieve full equity among its various international regions. Three groups released statements this week commending the unified spirit and work of General Conference.

The Inter-Ethnic Strategy Development Group listed four affirmations and one lament – the continuing "sin of racism" – in its statement:

We celebrate the work of this historic General Conference and the freedom it has provided for ALL to be able to participate in ALL levels of the mission and ministries of the church. We represent over twenty racial ethnic UMC faith communities and we bring a multitude of theology, history, tradition, language, experience, spirituality, generations and other gifts to the connection. We do not agree or think the same, but we find our unity in Jesus Christ who liberates us to accept ALL and move beyond the denominational infighting and focus on our mission. We pledge to do all that we can to ensure that The UMC is a place where there is room for everyone in God’s kin-dom.

The United Methodist Africa Forum listed several accomplishments that benefit African United Methodists, including two new bishops for Burundi and DR Congo.

With a great sense of responsibility, your UMAF leadership at the General Conference kept the focus on negotiating and representing African voices with the instructions provided from our two sessions in Johannesburg and Dar es salaam. This was meant to build consensus around our principles so as to achieve desired goals. It is important to realize through conversation and dialogue with others, one doesn’t fully get what we desire, yet maintaining our fundamental principles is key. 

Let us admit as your leaders at this point that we were not totally of the same mind, and we lost some negotiating capital in some issues due to some divisions which emerged as we headed to the General Conference. The dominating region managed to pull some of our leaders and African groups to the USA agenda. Even faced with this challenge we managed to keep holding the line to the end.

The UM Queer Clergy Caucus statement unwittingly captured elements of the two other documents released during the week of May 27.

The book of Ezra tells us that at the celebration of the rebuilt temple in Jerusalem elders also grieved what was lost from the past. "… the people could not distinguish the sound of the joyful shout from the sound of the people’s weeping, for the people shouted so loudly that the sound was heard far away” (Ezra 3:13, NRSVUE). We grieve those who were abused and excluded by the discriminatory policies and declarations of the past who have not lived to see this new day. We grieve for those who still see no place for themselves in the UMC. We grieve for LGBTQIA+ people who live in areas where abuse and discrimination will continue and those in places where this exclusion will be reinserted into their conferences’ policies. We pray that, in time, the UMC will truly be a fully inclusive denomination, and we will do our part to make that prayer a reality. Our joy at the outcomes of this General Conference is real, but God’s beloved queer members, clergy, and allies deserve better and will be working for more to be accomplished in and by our beloved UMC.

Veteran religion journalist Cynthia B. Astle has covered The United Methodist Church at all levels since 1988. She serves as editor of United Methodist Insight, which she founded in 2011 as a media channel for marginalized and under-served United Methodists.