'Traditional, Conservative, Wesleyan' Faith: What It IS and what it is NOT

Opinion

by

Correction: The March 22 newsletter said Dr. Dye graduated from Asbury Theological Seminary. She is a graduate of Asbury College, not the seminary.

Special to United Methodist Insight

I am writing to speak of word of profound gratitude and blessing to traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith. This is the faith tradition that nurtured me; the faith that has sustained and guided me; the faith I have lived, taught and preached all my life. I could not begin to describe my deep and daily thanks for the treasure of traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith. It is my spiritual lifeline.

I am also writing to clarify that what has just taken place in the disaffiliation season of our church is not traditional/Wesleyan/conservative faith standing against liberal-progressive change. Yes, I am fully aware that the disaffiliating proponents broadly publicized the division in this way. And I am well aware that the organized groups pressing for disaffiliation had roots in the traditional, Wesleyan, conservative side of the UMC.

Disaffiliation was pursued aggressively by people who appealed to traditional Wesleyan conservative faith. Their disaffiliation approach, however, did not reflect the traditional, Wesleyan conservative faith I know and cherish.

I am blessed to say my life has been a thorough immersion in traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith. Every Sunday of my life was Sunday School, worship, youth group and Sunday night services. I am so old that weekly worship included prayer meeting every Wednesday night. There were special revival services and summers were filled with conference camps and youth experiences – all in the traditional, conservative United Methodist faith.

When I went to college at Asbury College, my spiritual formation in conservative faith intensified. We had required chapel three times a week, Sunday morning worship and, for anyone who wanted to be with someone of the opposite gender, Sunday night church was the only approved option. (We were very "religious" on Sunday nights). There were required classes in "Basic Christian Beliefs" and Old and New Testament by highly respected Asbury professors. There were regular dorm prayer meetings, fall revival, winter revival, spring revival and, in the summer, Wilmore Camp Meeting, Kavanaugh Camp Meeting and Indian Springs Camp Meeting. Traditional, Wesleyan conservative faith is a faith I know well. It is the faith I love.

So, I know how to recognize what is – and what is not representative of conservative faith. And everything I know about conservative, traditional Methodist faith tells me that what we have seen in the disaffiliation initiatives does not represent traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith. I am not just speaking about press releases and published pieces. I am speaking about what I heard firsthand from leaders in the Wesleyan Covenant Association who made the claim that they were traditional “contenders for the faith.”

I have heard thousands of sermons through the years from traditional, Wesleyan, conservative preachers. I know the difference between what they claimed and what they did.

Everyone will have their own opinion of the insults, false allegations, personal attacks, misrepresentations, outright lies of the disaffiliation season. This I can tell you for sure: these actions do not represent “conservative, Wesleyan, traditional” Christian faith.

I have heard hundreds of sermons about the importance of the Golden Rule. I have never yet heard a conservative pastor try to take a biblical text to support the idea that it was all right to deceive others or smear others or personally attack others. Traditional, conservative faith believes in treating others the way we want to be treated. No healthy person wants to be treated the way the disaffiliation-minded people and groups have treated others in the Body of Christ.

I have heard countless sermons on John 3:16,17 and Jesus’ Great Commission in Matthew 28.  My conservative, Wesleyan, traditional family lived this out, taking their passion to share Christ to people all around the world, including many of my parents’ college friends from Asbury and two of my aunts. I can honestly say that I did not ever hear a conservative preacher teach that it was perfectly all right to abandon Christ’s New Commandment (John 16) to love others the way Jesus loved us. True traditional conservative faith went toward sinners both around the world and at our doorstep.

I heard hundreds of sermons on Christian character, integrity, honor and the importance of truth. People of “traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith” were sticklers for telling the truth. They emphasized repentance anytime people cheated on truth. I never heard a conservative sermon that said it was fine for conservative Christians to misrepresent, lie, distort or exaggerate the truth. If the disaffiliation movement truly represented “traditional, conservative Christian faith”, it would have – without hesitation or apology—stopped the smears and falsehoods that have come to characterize the anti-UMC groups. For those faithful to traditional, Wesleyan, conservative faith, anything less than a fair and honest representation would have been quickly called out. The conservative Christian faith I have so admired and lived would have put a stop to any falsehoods being spread. They would not – could not—be associated with that. They have, as I said, always been sticklers for telling the truth.

I have heard countless sermons about love – I Corinthians 13. “Love does no wrong to a neighbor” (Romans 13:10); that loving others fulfills the law and the prophets (Matthew 7:12, Galatians 5:14). I never one time heard someone in our conservative faith tradition preach that we could ignore all the biblical admonitions to forgive, to bear with one another, to live in charity if others disagreed with us. Not one time. People who truly represented traditional, conservative Christian faith would have spoken openly and repeatedly against every personal attack, insult, demeaning of others and false accusations as out of step with their faith. Conservative faith in the Wesleyan tradition does not allow for trashing Scripture, unleashing unfair criticism, personal attacks, insults and belittling of others.

I heard a "blue million" (as we say down South) sermons on personal responsibility: how important it was to take responsibility for our words/actions, ask forgiveness and make amends. Never one time did anyone in conservative traditional faith tell me that if somebody else did something wrong, it was ok for me to do whatever I wanted. The bad behavior of others did not give us a blank check for any kind of behavior.  Constantly pointing the finger at others was never an excuse for our own behavior. Traditional, conservative faith emphasized personal responsibility for holy behavior no matter what others did.

John Wesley was the founder and shaper of Methodist faith. In addition to scores of sermons through the years, I met a high bar of Wesley studies for ordination: graduate classes in Wesley studies as well as Methodist history, doctrine and polity. At no time did I ever hear a preacher or scholar say that Wesley founded the Methodist movement by a campaign of criticism against the Church of England, by creating and cultivating criticism against the church where he was a priest, by recruiting Church of England members to jump-start the Methodist movement.

People who truly represented traditional, conservative Christian faith would have spoken openly and repeatedly against every personal attack, insult, demeaning of others and false accusations as out of step with their faith. 

What I was taught consistently was that Wesley practiced and urged great charity toward others in the Christian family; that he consistently warned against developing hardness of heart against people who disagreed with others; that he was scrupulously honest. Wesley would debate with anyone. In his writing, his speaking and his teaching, he did not resort to personal attacks with anyone with whom he had a disagreement. He would never have spread false accusations or nurtured distrust toward colleagues. The campaigns of distrust and personal attacks, misrepresentations and public denunciation we have seen in the disaffiliation movement are the opposite of Wesley's faith and practice.

I am so deeply indebted to conservative, Wesleyan, traditional faith.

I am grateful that the United Methodist Church is full of individuals and churches that honorably live out the true heritage and honor of this faith tradition. Conservative, Wesleyan, traditional faith is welcome and valued in the UMC. Sacrificial allegiance to the principles of conservative, Wesleyan, traditional faith will always show clear alignment with the life, teachings and example of Jesus. Fidelity to conservative, traditional, Wesleyan faith is always cherished as it produces wisdom, spiritual maturity, goodwill and holiness—the polar-opposite characteristics of what we have experienced from the groups that have driven disaffiliation.

As a true Wesleyan, I wish my brothers and sisters in the newly formed Global Methodist Church well. I will pray for the day when they return to traditional, Wesleyan, conservative principles which they have abandoned in their zeal to break away from the UMC. To the extent they respect and claim John Wesley, they have a heavy load of guilt to carry. And to the extent that they are continuing to undermine and attack the UMC Body of Christ, they only deepen the distance between authentic conservative, Wesleyan, traditional faith and their practice. That not only damages the UMC, but such attacks also continue to show the stark contrast between their approach and true conservative, traditional, Wesleyan faith.

Everyone will have their own opinion of the insults, false allegations, personal attacks, misrepresentations, outright lies of the disaffiliation season. This I can tell you for sure: these actions do not represent “conservative, Wesleyan, traditional” Christian faith.

I write to honor conservative, traditional Wesleyan faith. I write to welcome and encourage all who are true to that faith. I write to clarify that what we have seen in the disaffiliation process does not represent traditional, conservative, Wesleyan faith. In fact, what we have experienced is the opposite of the life-giving, principle-anchored, Scripture-saturated, sacrificial Christian life of traditional, conservative, Wesleyan faith.

The Rev. Dr. Mary John Dye is a retired clergy member of the Western North Carolina Annual Conference of the United Methodist Church. For the past few years she has served as interim pastor for churches facing disaffiliation votes. Please email Insight for permission to republish this content elsewhere.