Folks, today was a lot. We spent a lot of time today debating the pension fund, the last regionalization petition, and a motion intended to save us time that took way too much time to decide on. A return plan for churches that disaffiliated but want to reunite with the UMC was established, along the with repeal of now-expired Paragraph 2553, which established the time-limited terms of disaffiliation for reasons of conscience over human sexuality.
By now you’ve probably heard the news that much of the discriminatory language against LGBTQ folks will be removed from the Book of Discipline, and the restrictions against gay clergy and gay weddings have largely been removed. Know that these items passed with out debate and with overwhelming majorities, and that we all need time to process the news. Remember that the secular news media don’t understand how the UMC operates, and for the most reliable news, UM News and UM Insight are generally good and authoritative sources.
Good work was done today, and I have a lot of hope for the UMC.
You can learn more about yesterday’s work from the NC Delegation video here:NCCUMC Delegate report 4/30
Today’s Delegation video features Bishop Connie Shelton: general-conference-update-3
Today’s news round-up from UM News is here: daily-digest-may-1-2024