Methodist and gays

Stances of Faiths on Gay Issues: The United Methodist Church

In May , the General Conference voted to remove longstanding bans on the ordination of LGBTQ+ clergy and the celebration of same-sex 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) gather to consider revisions to the Book of Resolutions and the Book of D

Methodist Off The Rails

Hopefull said:
Awhile back l posted anout my granddaughters church voting to split from the traditional Methodist denomination. This link will show why.

The Western Jurisdiction of the United Methodist Church promoted an openly gay clergyman to the rank of bishop in defiance of their rules prohibiting the ordination of "practicing homosexuals."

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VictorianLady said:
Yes I would declare that's a good reason to break away!
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forgiven61 said:
over the past some odd year the united Methodist conference board has strayed away from the Bible . you cant depart against God word and expect to be the Church. God is trimming the dead branches advocate soon they will be like the vineyard in proverbs
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Lanolin said:
I don't realize about the methodists churches (never attended one) but hasn't the same thing happened in the Anglican churches? Quakers don't hold anything like ordained Bishops or church hierarchies though I am sure people attend who go against or do not trust in

Sexuality and the United Methodists
Others, like the Episcopals, Presbyterians (PCUSA), and Lutherans (ELCA) have taken explicit stances in aid of LGBTQ inclusion. Of course, individual members of these institutions will contain diverse views on the topic, and the stance of an institution does not always show the stance of an individual member; The United Way 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 United 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 produce church decisions. In , the Conference voted to combine language to the church’s law, stating “the practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teaching,” and that male lover

Bishop Karen Oliveto is retiring in a few months as a United Methodist bishop.
Oliveto was emotional saying those words aloud. As the church's first openly gay bishop, her route was not always certain.
"Every day of my ministry, I've had to wonder, is this the evening my ordination will be taken from me?" Oliveto said.
That is, until this year's United Methodist General Conference, the church's global legislative body, voted to overturn every ban on LGBTQ people. The historic changes include a modern definition of marriage as a lifelong covenant between "two people of faith," rather than solely between a man and a woman, and a repeal of its ban on LGBTQ clergy.
The General Conference also struck down a year-old stance on homosexuality being "incompatible with Christian teaching."
"To hear someone tell, 'we need to repent of the harm we've done.' I didn't grasp my body was waiting for that," said Oliveto.
The changes, which are successful immediately, open new doors for LGBTQ members. One year-old, who wished to go by J.M., is working toward becoming ordained as a deacon in the Unite