General Conference has determined certain parts of the Book of Discipline should apply to all United Methodists and not subject to local adaptation. To change any of these portions would require General Conference action.
They are:
- The Constitution
- Doctrinal Standards and Our Theological Task
- The Ministry of All Christians
- The Social Principles
As the standing committee has been working on Part VI, the United Methodist Board of Church and Society has been holding consultations around the world on the Social Principles, which are not church law but the church’s “prayerful and thoughtful effort … to speak the human issues in the contemporary world.”
The consultations are the first step in developing a less U.S.-centric, more global Social Principles, a process that will also last through at least 2020.