Language Removal in The United Methodist Church

The United Methodist Church’s postponed 2020 General Conference finally met and removed the language around the allowance of same-gender weddings and LGBTQ+ ordination.  It also removed the language citing that homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching that’s been in the denomination’s Book of Discipline since 1972.

Reserve Lay Delegate Corey Shirey, Oklahoma

People who favor full-inclusion see this as a step in the right direction while those of a more traditionalist mindset may find themselves uneasy toward what the future may hold for their church.

What the General Conference did was move to a neutral position.  It is important to understand that removal does not equate approval from the standpoint of United Methodist polity or doctrine.  

This movement gives more autonomy and tries to recognize and honor differences throughout the various regions of the world where The United Methodist Church lives out its mission.  We’ve moved to a more libertarian understanding of human sexuality.

Ordination of clergy has always had its authority within the annual conference (geographic region under the authority of a bishop).  Clergy have their membership in the conference and not the local church.  Within the constitution of the Book of Discipline, paragraph 33 defines the annual conference as the basic body of the church.  This fits within our polity to grant individual conferences the authority to determine who they will or will not ordain.  The removal of the language places this authority back into the hands of the annual conference district committees on ordained ministry, conference boards of ordained ministry and the clergy executive sessions of our annual conferences. 

Those of a traditionalist mindset have often expressed that they are fearful of receiving a gay pastor.  When the cabinet seeks to appoint a pastor to a church, the superintendents look at the church’s profile which lines out their identity and is updated by the church annually.  We look at the staff parish relations (personnel) committee’s review of the pastor to see what kind of pastor they would like to receive at this point in time.  The superintendent often meets with this committee prior to setting the appointment to see what may have changed.   Through all of these channels, the local church expresses their preferences on a wide variety of options.  We have always taken into account theological preference.  The cabinet does its best not to appoint a conservative pastor to a progressive congregation or a progressive pastor to a conservative congregation.  We want the best fit possible in order to allow the congregational leadership to thrive without clashing with the pastor and for the pastor to avoid burnout from repeatedly stepping into trouble in a mismatched context.  We seek to do no harm to church or pastor.

Churches will continue to have the autonomy to decide wedding policies.  They will not get into trouble or be forced to conduct same-gender weddings by the state of from private individuals (separation of church and state).  The Judicial Council (the United Methodist equivalent of the Supreme Court) ruled earlier this week that the church may develop wedding policies that prohibit same-gender weddings in their sanctuaries.  However, one question I have asked churches is “When was the last time you had a wedding in your sanctuary?”  We find that most young people are preferring venues outside the church for their weddings these days and this may have more to do with the church’s no-alcohol policy than anything else.  I would caution churches on immediately jumping into a wedding policy just as I would caution a couple into jumping into marriage too suddenly.  It would be better for a church to do a study to see where they align across their membership if they haven’t already done so.  I never like to invite trouble unnecessarily.

This is not the first time in our history that the church has varied on biblical interpretation.  From our origins coming out of Judea, the early church had difficulty surrounding the issue of circumcision.  In Genesis 17:14,  God states rather clearly, “Any uncircumcised male who is not circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin shall be cut off from his people; he has broken my covenant.”

Paul reinterprets this as he begins to share the Good News of Jesus Christ to people outside the Jewish faith in the Mediterranean world.  He states in Romans chapter two, “Rather, a person is a Jew who is one inwardly, and circumcision is a matter of the heart, by the Spirit, not the written code.”  He goes on to share in Galatians 5:6 to say, “For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision counts for anything; the only thing that counts is faith working through love.”

This was well-received by the multitudes as the church spread.  But it was received as heresy by many and Paul was beaten up and run out of multiple synagogues for preaching this message.  Some of the violence done to Paul was likely by Christians who believed in strictly following the law. 

And of course, Paul also states in 1 Corinthians 9 that he follows the law to reach those who claim it for their lives while also operating outside the law to reach those who are foreign to it.  He was all things to all people so that some might be saved.  The salvation we find in Christ Jesus was of higher priority than other scripture.

As United Methodists today, we understand that, like Paul, we seek to be contextual in our ministry.  The language surrounding our LGBTQ siblings has been controversial and been the cause of many an argument in the church.  While we don’t think the language removal will end debate, we do think that it might center our mission more around making disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world.  I’ve often seen people on mission trips form solid friendships with those who vote very differently at the polls.  They rallied around helping others.  This sounds like faith working through love.

And while some believe that the church should speak more universally around LGBTQ+ issues, Wesleyans have always allowed people to think for themselves.  John Wesley states in his sermon, Catholic Spirit, “Every wise man, therefore, will allow others the same liberty of thinking which he desires they should allow him; and will no more insist on their embracing his opinions, than he would have them to insist on his embracing theirs. He bears with those who differ from him..."  Wesley asks more famously within this sermon, "Though we cannot think alike, may we not love alike?  May we not be of one heart, though we are not of one opinion?  Without all doubt, we may."

As we seek to continue as a denomination to love one another through our differences, I like to think about this as I would Thanksgiving dinner.  Most extended families do not all think alike or act alike.  There are some who come to Thanksgiving that you would likely seat at opposite ends of the table to preserve the peace.  There may, in fact, be people that you tend to avoid at these gatherings.  But most people would never deny them entrance to the family gathering.  Bonds of genetics and covenant and family history tie us together.  This may be a good metaphor for the body of Christ.  We may not all agree on a variety of things but in the church, we all declare that we bind ourselves under the lordship of Jesus Christ.  This lordship calls us to forgive and seek reconciliation.  It calls us to love – not out of feelings of closeness – but out of action that seeks to convey who God is to the world. 

The General Conference’s decisions line up with our belief in God’s prevenient grace.  God loves all people and wants them to know this.  We believe that the removal of the LGBTQ+ language furthers this love and allows contextualization over how the church lives out this love.   

For many in our church, this is a welcome change that allows them to live and serve in our church without being labeled as “unclean.”  For others, it is a challenge to their faith or their interpretation of scripture.  I would invite all of us to center ourselves around the faith of Jesus Christ who calls us to love God with all our being and to love our neighbors as we love ourselves.  Jesus names this as primary even over other scriptures.  At times it is challenging.  But if we love through the challenge, we often find that blessing awaits on the other side. 

I pray this is so for our church.