
CV NEWS FEED // Delegates gathered at the United Methodist Church summit have endorsed an amendment to its constitution, which, if passed, would trust churches on a regional basis to decide for themselves what stance to take on LGBTQ issues.
Thousands of United Methodists from around the world are gathering in Charlotte, North Carolina, for their much-anticipated General Conference. Typically the denomination’s summit is held every four years, but church leaders delayed the 2020 gathering until now due to the COVID-19 pandemic. This year, the 11-day gathering runs from April 23 to May 3 and is taking place after one-fourth of their more conservative congregations have left the denomination because of issues related to sexual morality.
According to an April 26 AP News report, the vote passed 586-164 on the third day of the General Conference. The petition needs to be approved by two-thirds of the total votes cast in the next annual conference, or among local governing bodies in order to be officially ratified.
The vote solidified the creation of several regional conferences in the United States and others across Europe, Africa, and the Philippines.
If passed, the report noted, Methodist churches will be able “to adapt church rules to their local contexts,” opening the door to the possibility of ordination for LGBTQ individuals and same-sex marriage.
Prior to its most recent shift in position, the United Methodist Church put forward the following stance on homosexuality in its 2016 Book of Discipline:
We affirm that all persons are individuals of sacred worth, created in the image of God. All persons need the ministry of the Church in their struggles for human fulfillment, as well as the spiritual and emotional care of a fellowship that enables reconciling relationships with God, with others, and with self.
The United Methodist Church does not condone the practice of homosexuality and considers this practice incompatible with Christian teaching.
Furthermore, in February 2019, the United Methodist Church voted in favor of the “Traditionalist Plan” at its General Conference, effectively banning same-sex marriage ceremonies and ordination for LGBTQ individuals.
The regional plan also granted independence for several notably conservative local conferences in its Eurasia Episcopal Area, such as Russia, Belarus, Kyrgyzstan, and Kazakhstan. “While the reasons weren’t spelled out explicitly at the General Conference, the Russian-area churches are more conservative on matters such as LGBTQ issues,” AP News stated.
