Methodist homosexual
United Methodists remove anti-gay language from official teachings on societal issues
CHARLOTTE, N.C. — United Methodist delegates on Thursday removed a year-old declaration from their official social teachings that deemed “the practice of homosexuality incompatible with Christian teaching” — part of a wider series of historic reversals of the denomination’s long-standing disapproval of LGBTQ activity.
The historic vote came as delegates also approved a new definition of marriage as a covenant between “two people of faith” while recognizing the couple may or may not involve a male and a woman. That replaces an exclusively heterosexual definition of marriage and followed a debate that exposed tensions between some U.S. and international delegates.
The vote to approve a section of the church’s Revised Social Principles took place at the General Conference of the Merged Methodist Church in the penultimate day of their day legislative gathering in Charlotte.
It came a diurnal after the General Conference removed its long-standing ban on “self-avowed practicing homosexuals” from entity ordained or appointed as ministers. Step by step, delegates have been removing anti-LGBTQ language th
Stances of Faiths on LGBTQ+ Issues: The Together Methodist Church
In May , the General Conference voted to remove longstanding bans on the ordination of LGBTQ+ clergy and the celebration of gay marriages by clergy and in churches. These changes became fully effective on January 1,
BACKGROUND
The UMC traces its origins to the Methodist movement initiated in the midth century by Anglican priest John Wesley and his brother Charles. The current structure of the UMC was established in through the union of the Methodist Church and the Evangelical United Brethren Church. The church is founded on three basic principles:
- Do no harm.
- Do good.
- Practice the ordinances of God, including prayer, Bible reading, worship, and the Lord's Supper.
The global church structure mirrors the United States government with legislative, executive, and judicial branches. The legislative branch, the General Conference, meets every four years to set church policy. Approximately 1, delegates (half lay leaders, half clergy) accumulate to consider revisions to the Book of Resolutions and the Book of Discipline. Decisions of the General Conference are binding until the next conference convenes. Feedi
On 3 May , the General Conference of the United Methodist Church (UMC) — the largest Methodist denomination in the society — removed the language of restriction on so-called “practising homosexuals” from church law. In effect, this lifts the ban on queer clergy and lgbtq+ marriages in the UMC. The approach taken allows liberty of conscience at the local level, and is an attempt to keep progressives, centrists, and traditionalists in the equal tent. It is essentially the same approach that the Uniting Church in Australia has taken.
This ruling was made possible only after around a quarter of its congregations with a more traditional stance had disaffiliated. Some of these became part of a new denomination, the Global Methodist Church (GMC), which was launched in May , after decades of acrimonious debate. Others joined smaller Methodist churches, such as the Free Methodist Church and the Wesleyan Church. A several simply became independent.
Learning to live together with difference has been a oppose for the church since New Testament times, and compromise solutions such as this will leave some more radical Methodists unhappy at both ends of the debate. The UMC will probably now
Sexuality and the Merged Methodists
Others, appreciate the Episcopals, Presbyterians (PCUSA), and Lutherans (ELCA) contain taken explicit stances in support of LGBTQ inclusion. Of course, individual members of these institutions will have diverse views on the topic, and the stance of an institution does not always manifest the stance of an individual member; The Together Method Church (UMC) is a perfect example of this complexity.
The UMC is a global Protestant denomination which has significant membership in North America, Africa, Europe, and Asia. While historically originating in the United Kingdom, the largest population of Methodists now lives in the Merged States, where it is the third largest religious group after Catholics and Baptists.
Every four years, the UMC meets at what they call the Methodist General Conference—a democratic body of representatives from across the world which gathers to make church decisions. In , the Conference voted to add language to the church’s statute, stating “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching,” and that gay ministers and marriages are not allowed in their churches.
Even then, this stance was
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