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UM Church

Articles about developments of alternatives for the future of The United Methodist Church: discussions of options, other expressions of the Methodist or Wesleyan Way, new alignments, petitions and resolutions approved in annual conferences, etc.

by David W. Scott (from UM-Insight)
September 23, 2019

As The United Methodist Church continues to react to GC2019, plan for GC2020, and try to come to grips with the all-consuming debate over gay ordination and gay marriage in the church, it seems that the church may be settling into a Mexican standoff between US (and Western European) centrists and progressives, US traditionalists, and African (and Eastern European) leaders.

In technical terms, a Mexican standoff is a conflict in which none of the parties can achieve their goals, nor can they retreat from the conflict. Thus, the parties remain in a deadlocked state....

Here’s a run-down of the parties in the current UMC Mexican standoff, why they can’t achieve what they want, and why they are not willing to retreat. [Continue reading.]

by , of HackingChristianity.net

Petitions In. Now What?

Another milestone has passed for The United Methodist Church. Petitions to change the Book of Discipline, our book of doctrine and polity, were due September 18th. Done and done!

That means that the most legitimate, well-crafted ideas will be in the pre-published ADCA come February for consideration by the May 2020 General Conference in Minneapolis. These petitions will be translated and interpreted in the four UMC languages, and so these petitions will have the most weight when it comes to discernment.

So. Now what?

Read more: The winding road ahead for United Methodism

by Morgan Guyton
September 18, 2019 (from UM-Insight.net)

One of the most uncomfortable and least talked about parables of Jesus is his parable of the wineskins. Jesus says that new wine cannot be poured into old wineskins without bursting them; it requires new wineskins. The implications of this parable for the continuity of apostolic tradition are highly problematic. Which is why they are usually qualified, explained away, and bracketed. ..There is a truth in Jesus’ parable that cannot be ignored. The Holy Spirit does new things that cannot be seamlessly assimilated into the old tradition.

Read more: The Bursting of the Methodist Wineskin

Jan Lawrence, Executive Director of the Reconciling Ministries Network and active in the Love Your Neighbor Coalition, has written about where the United Methodist Church is at this "kairos" moment. Here are links to her blog posts:

PART I: An Aerial View of the United Methodist Landscape

Aug 22, 2019 | RMN Blog, UMC News

Despite the deepening cracks threatening the good a global Church can do, The United Methodist Church is still making disciples, providing disaster relief, providing healthcare and schools, and more. United Methodists are still on the forefront, responding to global needs — responding to Christ’s call. The power of The UMC is indeed being exercised in every corner, on every strata, of the Church and in our world....

Read more excerpts: Reflections on Where We Are

  1. Western Jurisdiction Holds "Fresh United Methodism Summit"
  2. African Pastor Calls For Honesty in Global Methodism
  3. Two Traditionalist Arguments that Fall Flat
  4. Global? Who You Calling 'Global'?
  5. Papers, Discussions, Research: UM-Insight.org
  6. Parody Humor; Venn Diagram; First African Reconciling Congregation
  7. GC2020: Pick Up a Pen, Start Writing
  8. The struggle for the perfect plan
  9. State of the UMC: Bloggers weigh in
  10. The US & the Central Conferences at the UM Scholars Conference
  11. Speech: Four Words, Three Rules, Two Standards, One Grace
  12. Commission on General Conference added to confusion
  13. Bishop Richard Wilke: A plea to the United Methodist Church
  14. Diverse group of United Methodists explores separation
  15. Plans canceled for GC2024 in Philippines
  16. Connectional Table Approves Legislation Creating New U.S. Structure
  17. Mainstream UMC Survey Results Show Urgency
  18. Scholars gather to champion LGBTQ inclusion
  19. Petition Process Open for 2020 General Conference
  20. Judicial Council Docket - October, 2019
  21. Church leaders look at options for future of denomination
  22. Apportionment collection rates down after GC2019
  23. Conferences Mull Denomination's Future
  24. What does it mean to Dissolve The United Methodist Church?
  25. Where The Money (Doesn't) Come From
  26. Bishops Release Rulings of Law on Ordinations, Finances
  27. Two Bishops Offer Plan for UMC Future
  28. Arbitration: A Possible Help in the Coming Separation
  29. UMC Bishops pose five questions to Judicial Council on Traditional Plan
  30. A Letter to Centrists
  31. General Conference is Broken; Annual Conferences Are Not
  32. US elections see shift in GC2020 delegates
  33. 76% of US Annual Conferences Reject Traditional Plan
  34. How To Restructure The UMC
  35. "Where Do We Go From Here?"
  36. June 20 Marks Four Significant Elections
  37. Inclusive Methodists secure Jurisdictional Conference majorities
  38. Recommended candidates offer open letter to leaders and colleagues
  39. A Texas-Size Wakeup Call for WCA
  40. "Know When To Hold 'Em, Know When to Fold 'Em..."
  41. Mountain Sky Conference Report
  42. An Open Letter to the WCA
  43. How The West Can Help the Rest
  44. Annual Conference 2019 Petition Results
  45. A Primer on UM Apportionments
  46. UMC-Next: Reports and Docs
  47. Methodist Movement New England
  48. Loved and Liberated: Our Movement Forward Proclamation

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