Yesterday, the United Methodist Church committed a theological rebellion, leaving Biblical Christianity behind and rushing to join the LGBTQ revolution. In progressives' view, they are making up for lost time. In the long run of Christian history, they were on the verge of falling off the map of orthodox Christianity.
The United Methodist General Conference voted 692-51, without any formal debate, to overturn the church's historic discipline and doctrine on homosexuality. Yesterday's vote took place in Charlotte, North Carolina, but its effects will be felt around the world.
John Wesley never intended to found a church. His goal was to lead a sanctification movement within the Church of England, assisted by his younger brother Charles. They eventually came to be called “Methodists,” a term of derision, simply because of the methodical approach taken by Wesley's pious association. The Methodist movement quickly reached the colonies, and Wesley himself came to Savannah in 1735. The Methodist movement was created for America's moment. Wesley was a loyal British citizen and loyal to the Church of England. The Revolutionary War led Americans to establish their own churches. The Methodist Episcopal Church was founded in Baltimore in his 1784 year, and the movement spread like wildfire. Methodism eventually became the largest single denominational movement in America, and remained a force well into the 20th century.
Split by the Civil War, the church reunited in 1938 and added the United Brethren in 1968 to form the United Methodist Church. Although the church seemed united for decades, the conflict between liberals and conservatives was fully evident by the end of the 20th century. It was the LGBTQ movement that ultimately blew up the church. Although United Methodism was the last of the older liberal denominations of mainline Protestantism to formally join the Rainbow Revolution, liberal Methodists have long rebelled against official church teachings and policies. They elected gay bishops, incited LGBTQ activism, ordained LGBTQ ministers, and officiated at same-sex weddings, all in open violation of official church doctrine and policy. ing.
As far back as 1972, the Church had adopted language in its Book of Discipline that clearly stated its beliefs. In 2019, Methodists further strengthened this language. The statement was clear. “The practice of homosexuality is incompatible with Christian teachings. Therefore, no person who identifies as homosexual may be recognized as a candidate, ordained as a minister, or set apart for ministry in the United Methodist Church. ” The language is infinitely clear. No one misunderstood its meaning. It represented a unified judgment of sound Biblical faith and Christian tradition. As of yesterday, it's all gone, completely gone, pushed aside by the sexual revolutionaries who now rule the church.
In the critical years of 2022 and 2023, no fewer than 7,000 congregations left the United Methodist Church.
You can trace important turning points in the history of the church. Yesterday was one of them. John Wesley's holiness movement, once America's largest denomination, is now a shadow of its former self, abandoning its Christian faith and founding a new religion centered on celebrating LGBTQ sexuality. The powerful movement founded by John Wesley to bring holiness and piety to the Church of England succumbed to a revolution promoting new sexuality and radical gender ideology. And I was happy to do it.
With these issues looming, conservatives once thought they had an advantage. They believed they could force a split in the church and that liberals would break away and found their own LGBTQ-affirming denominations. But conservatives went too far. In fact, the conservatives were outnumbered and ultimately defeated. Once they understood the situation, it was the conservatives who withdrew en masse. In the critical years of 2022 and 2023, no fewer than 7,000 congregations left the United Methodist Church. In some conferences, including one centered in Dallas, Texas, nearly 70 percent of the churches left.
To put it bluntly, the remnants of the United Methodist Church, freed from those conservative congregations, rushed headlong into Charlotte to abandon historic Christianity and join the LGBTQ revolution. They didn't waste any time. Speaker after speaker took to the microphone and introduced themselves using the required language: name, sexual identity, gender identity, and preferred pronouns. That's exactly what activists wanted and conservatives feared. In one moment, the sect's official position changed completely.
Victories continue to emerge for progressive activists. The church will move toward regionalism, and in some regions even more radically toward LGBTQ innovation. Even as yesterday's historic vote was announced, leaders promised more votes would be taken before the session concludes later this week. But for those who understand the score, the game is over.
As the last century drew to a close, the German theologian Wolfhard Pannenberg declared: A loving partnership equivalent to marriage, such a church would no longer stand on Biblical grounds, but would go against the clear witness of Scripture. A Church that takes this step will cease to be the one holy Catholic Church, the Apostolic Church. ”
That's exactly what happened yesterday when the General Conference of the United Methodist Church formally renounced Biblical Christianity and did so in front of a watching world. The United Methodist Church is currently not unified and is not a church.
