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Please make note of our new email address: cm@confessingumc.org
Welcome to our website!
We are United Methodists who love our church and who are centered on Christ. We believe in the historic Christian faith and are especially grateful for our Wesleyan understanding of God’s grace and his call for personal and social holiness. We are committed to renewing the United Methodist Church by promoting biblical truth and by praying for God’s Spirit to unite his people around our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.
Thank you for your interest in the Confessing Movement. If we can be of any service to you or if you have a prayer request, please contact us. If you want to join with others in working to renew The United Methodist Church, please give us your contact information.
With God’s grace and because of people like you, we believe that the best years are ahead for the church we love.
PLEASE NOTE THAT THE CONFESSING MOVEMENT OFFICE WILL BE CLOSED AT NOON ON DECEMBER 24TH AND WILL REOPEN ON JANUARY 4TH IN OBSERVANCE OF CHRISTMAS AND NEW YEARS.
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The Manhattan Declaration
A Call of Christian Conscience
Visit www.manhattandeclaration.org to join in reaffirming the fundamental truths about justice and the common good, and to call upon our fellow citizens, believers and non-believers alike, to join us in defending them.
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GCFA Seeks Speical General Conference Session
A UMNS Report
By Kathy L. Gilbert*
Dec. 9, 2009 | NASHVILLE, Tenn. (UMNS)
The denomination’s financial agency is asking the Council of Bishops to call a special session of General Conference to address funding pensions for United States clergy and reorganization of its 40-year-old structure.
The General Council on Finance and Administration approved a motion to encourage the bishops at their May 2010 meeting to call a special session before the planned April 25-May 4, 2012, General Conference in Tampa, Fla. The council also decided to work with the United Methodist Board of Pension and Health Benefits to help ensure annual conferences could pay clergy pension plans.
In November, the Council of Bishops also discussed the idea of a special called session to discuss both matters.
“I’m sensing there is a way in which those two things go together,” Bishop Gregory Palmer, president of the Council of Bishops, said Dec. 9. “I have put it (special session) on the agenda for the January executive committee meeting of the council as an item for more conversation.”
A committee led by Bishop Larry Goodpaster, president-elect of the Council of Bishops and chair of the Call to Action Steering Committee, recommended hiring an outside consultant to do an audit of the church’s structure when the two bodies met in November. The plan was approved by the bishops and the Connectional Table, a 60-member group responsible for coordinating the mission, ministries and resources of the United Methodist Church.
Issues under consideration include eliminating guaranteed appointments for clergy, recruiting young leaders and exploring the “right sizing” of the denomination’s general agencies and church activities.
The idea for a special session was introduced by Bishop Hope Morgan Ward of the Mississippi Annual (regional) Conference at the fall Council of Bishops meeting.
“If we move toward a four-year cycle in which all our old ways move us forward, I wonder if this dream can come to pass?” she asked, referring to the recommendations of the Call to Action Task Force. “It will require a different sort of gathering than a General Conference.”
The bishops also at the November meeting approved a special task force to respond to the challenges of funding clergy pensions. Bishops Jonathan Keaton, Scott Jones, Leo Soriano, Clifton Ives, Paul Leeland and Warner Brown were assigned to the task force.
Barbara Boigegrain, top executive of the Board of Pension and Health Benefits, said “robust” discussions about the economic downturn and the church’s response to it have been going on for a year. The resolution from the General Council on Finance and Administration came as a surprise, however. “No one had asked questions of us,” she said.
Boigegrain said the board has been gathering information from the annual conferences and has heard from all but two. She said all the conferences will be able to pay their responsibilities to pension funds for 2009 and 2010. Further analysis is ongoing, she said.
The United Methodist Book of Discipline states a special session of the General Conference may be called by the Council of Bishops. A special session before the 2012 meeting would be composed of the delegates to the 2008 General Conference “except when a particular annual conference or missionary conference shall prefer to have a new election it may do so.”
The purpose of the special session should be stated in the call and only that business should be discussed unless there is a two-thirds vote by the delegates to add other business. The last special session was in 1970 and was called to deal with the 1968 merger with the Evangelical United Brethren Church, which created The United Methodist Church.
*Gilbert is a news writer for United Methodist News Service in Nashville, Tenn.
News media contact: Kathy L. Gilbert, Nashville, Tenn., (615) 742-5470 or newsdesk(at)umcom.org.
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Renewal group leaders meet with the Bishops' Unity Task Force
On November 5, 2009, twelve (12) leaders of the renewal groups within the United Methodist Church met with the Bishops' Unity Task Force. We were grateful for their invitation to meet at Lake Junaluska and to share our concerns about the unity of the church and how we can move forward in mission together. The same task force had previously met with a group representing the Reconciling Movement and the Methodist Federation for Social Action (MFSA). (See below for persons representing the renewal groups and for the bishops present for the meeting.)
We had a wide-ranging and forthright discussion about the matters that threaten the unity of the United Methodist Church. We spoke about (1) the theological differences that divide our church; (2) events at General Conference that have concerned us; and (3) activities and decisions outside of General Conference by United Methodist leaders which have, at least in our thinking, created divisions rather than unity.
We were very clear that we respect the office of bishop and that we want our bishops to lead us by defending and promoting the church's positions on controversial issues as stated in The Book of Discipline. We also made sure to state that whereas we can respectfully listen to all opinions and we can act graciously towards all people, we cannot accept all positions or compromise on what God has clearly revealed in the Scriptures.
We were heartened by the desire of the Bishops to hear us and to understand us. It was also encouraging to hear from them that many of the issues that concern us have been discussed in the Council of Bishops. All of us present were in agreement that there must be a better way "to do General Conference" and some ideas were shared along those lines. We are now determining if and how the conversation will continue.
Thank you for caring for the United Methodist Church and for the cause of Christ.
Those representing the renewal groups were:
Billy Abraham (Perkins School of Theology)
Steve Wende (Sr. Pastor, First UM Church, Houston)
Tom Harrison (Sr. Pastor, Asbury UM Church, Tulsa)
Steve Wood (Sr. Pastor, Mt. Pisgah UM Church, Atlanta)
Alice Wolfe (Sr. Pastor, Anna UM Church, Anna, Ohio)
Chuck Savage (Sr. Pastor, Kingswood UM Church, Dunwoody, GA)
Pat Miller (Executive Director of The Confessing Movement)
Tom Lambrecht (Sr. Pastor, Faith Community UM Church, Greenville, Wisconsin, and coordinator of the Renewal and Reform Coalition efforts at General Conference 2008)
Liza Kittle (President of the RENEW Network)
Larry Baird (District Superintendent, Cornerstone District, Western New York AC)
Eddie Fox (World Director of Evangelism for the World Methodist Council)
Rob Renfroe (President and Publisher of Good News and Assoc. Pastor, The Woodlands, UM Church, Texas.)
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- Bishop Sally Dyck
Statement from Bishop Sally Dyck, Bishops' Unity Task Force
Our meeting with the Renewal Groups occurred on November 5, 2009 at Lake Junaluska. We had an open and spirited conversation around such topics as what unity is theologically and practically. We also heard from them about their pain in terms of actions at General Conference (again we find that there is deep pain within our church around our divisions). We began to think about some of the ways in which we can work together (and across differences) to holy conference and will follow up on some of these ideas.
Blessings on you!
Those representing the Bishops' Unity Task Force were:
Sally Dyck, Chairperson (Minnesota)
Mike Lowry (Central Texas)
Minerva Carcano (Desert Southwest)
Peter Weaver (New England)
Daniel Arichea (The Philippines)
Joao Machado (Mozambique)
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GREAT NEWS FROM THE JUDICIAL COUNCIL!
The Judicial Council made a ruling to uphold the doctrinal standard of the United Methodist Church regarding homosexuality. CLICK HERE to read more.
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A word from The Confessing Movement President
2009 has been a busy year for United Methodists! Following our 2008 General Conference, every Annual Conference in United Methodism is voting on 32 potential Constitutional Amendments. For many months, your Confessing Movement leadership has been at work praying, educating and preparing folks to respond to these critical issues facing our denomination.
I want to express my deepest appreciation to our Executive Director, Senator Patricia Miller, our Associate Directors (Dr. Bill Bouknight and Dr. Riley Case) and our former President The Rev. Rob Renfroe. While the final outcome of these vital votes is still unknown, I want to celebrate the outstanding effort put forth by our team. Conference Coordinators and workers have given their best in this important endeavor. Anyone familiar with these Constitutional Amendments has to understand the critical nature of this work.
The leadership team has done a remarkable job, communicating about these potential amendments! The keys have been: prayerful strategizing, building grass-roots communication and work teams, and diligent follow-up. Praise God for all who have participated in this vital ministry!
As I think about the future of the Confessing Movement within The United Methodist Church, I am excited! I am encouraged…as I remember our commitment to connect with people who are sometimes referred to as the “Methodist Middle,” those who choose not to align with any caucus group. Those in the “Methodist Middle” are going to have much to say about the future of our great denomination. Some suggest, and I tend to agree, “Their votes will be determinative!” We will continue our educational efforts to help those of the “Methodist Middle” see how much they have in common with the mission of The Confessing Movement!
Your Confessing Movement Board of Directors are committed to being proactive, not reactive! From the beginning of our work together in The Confessing Movement, this has been our focus! We have, and will continue to accentuate the positives of our great denomination, and work together to continue the faithful doctrinal distinctives of United Methodism.
We will continue to remember who we are…United Methodist Christians committed to: Jesus…the uniquely divine Son of God, the only Savior of the world, and the Lord of all. We commit ourselves to make sure our ministry is faithful to scripture. In contrast to Gretta Vosper’s beliefs, described in her book: With or without God: Why the Way We Live is More Important than What We Believe, our desire is to live by the precepts of Scriptural holiness, to preach it and invite all to a Scriptural wedding of right belief and right action!!
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Mississippi Annual Conference in Turmoil
On July 12, 2009, a lesbian couple gave their testimony during the Mississippi Annual Conference worship service. Bishop Hope Morgan Ward defends her decision to allow the testimony in a letter to the conference that states, “As your bishop, I have been given responsibility to uphold the doctrine, discipline and polity of The United Methodist Church. This is a responsibility I remember and embrace in this instance and in every instance. The Mississippi Conference has consistently supported the positions on homosexuality stated in The Discipline of The United Methodist Church.” Many evangelicals are deeply troubled by the use of a worship service to seemingly promote the homosexual lifestyle under the guise of “including those who have felt hurt or marginalized by our church (Bishop Ward),” despite the church's position on the practice of a homosexual lifestyle. The Board of Directors of the Mississippi Fellowship of United Methodist Evangelicals (MSFUME) issued an open letter stating their specifics concerns regarding the event.
CLICK HERE to read the complete statement of Bishop Ward
CLICK HERE to read the open letter from the Board of Directors of the MSFUME.
CLICK HERE to watch the YouTube video of Renee Sappington and Connie Campbell
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Dr. John Ed Mathison, current Board Member of The Confessing Movement and former President, has launched a new ministry called John Ed Mathison Leadership Ministries. His goal is to provide opportunities to train pastors and laity to become leaders in transforming the world! Please visit his website at www.johnedmathison.org for more information.
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2005 Unity StatementUnity is the critical issue in The United Methodist Church today. This was evidenced by discussions at the 2004 General Conference and the subsequent appointment of the Unity Task Force by the Council of Bishops. |
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